


A Conversation with Raptors

by Genuka



Series: Conversations With Raptors [1]
Category: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling, Jurassic Park (Movies), Jurassic Park III (2001)
Genre: Gen, M/M, Parselmouth Harry Potter, Parseltongue, Potter Luck, Raptors
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-21
Updated: 2016-03-07
Packaged: 2018-05-15 06:53:46
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 25
Words: 62,220
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5775871
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Genuka/pseuds/Genuka
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Something strange happened to Harry during a Death Eater attack. He finds himself suddenly facing an entire pack of angry raptors, two raptor eggs, and four scared humans. Its just his luck that the raptors understand Parseltongue.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Falling From The Sky

**Author's Note:**

> This popped into my head and will not leave me alone. I have no clue how long it will get but for the moment its a bunny killing one-shot... enjoy!  
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A crack split the air. A small group of four humans surrounded by a pack of Velociraptors looked up from the pair of eggs lying in the sand between them in an attempt to locate the sound. A crash from above heralded the arrival of a small falling body of a young man. Humans and Raptors alike watched in astonishment as his fall slowed five feet from the ground, granting him a fairly soft landing for all the loud thud made the humans wince.

"Fucking Death Eaters! Fucking Voldemort! Why can't that bloody ~hatchling killer~ just leave me the fuck alone! First he has to try and kill me as a baby, getting me sent to the bloody Dursleys now he's gotten everyone else! ~Nestmates! Gone! Vile Hatchling Killer!~ And on top of it all something with our wands dumped me wherever the fuck here is," Harry swore viciously, shifting carelessly between English and Parseltongue as he checked his still bleeding injuries. He found a fractured left forearm, three cracked ribs on his right side, and a bruised bone on his left shin. The inquisitive chirp one of the Raptors gave off had him immediately freezing in place before cautiously looking up to see what else fate had dumped in his lap.

"What's a Death Eater?" a kid not much younger than Harry himself asked.

Harry could see the kid was a bit beat up. Dressed in a pair of sturdy shorts and a ratty red sweater the kid had clearly seen better days but was also clearly being protected by the three adults. The adults were all a bit beat up as well though he could see the resemblance between the kid and the younger man as well as the blond woman who was probably his mother. The older guy with the plaid shirt and canvas backpack was clearly not related by blood to the other three but Harry could also see the wonder and little kiddy glee in his eyes at something new.

"~He is a speaker!~" the lead female raptor hissed in surprise, rearing back a bit in obvious nervousness.

"Um... Just a sec. Big teeth get attention first," Harry said raising a hand in the clear wait command before turning warily to the raptors. "~Yes, I speak, though I didn't know that anyone but serpents could understand Parseltongue... Are you having a dispute with the humans? Perhaps I can help by translating.~"

"~What is there to discuss?! They are eggsnatchers!~" One of the raptors screeched in obvious outrage.

"~And how do you know that they stole the eggs? Perhaps they took them from the eggthief and only wanted to return them? Look, all I'm saying is that if I translate you'll get this sorted faster and it might keep someone from being hurt if they didn't do anything. If they actually are eggthieves I can make sure they are punished but one of them is little more than a hatchling and I will not let you kill his parents in front of him!~" Harry hissed at them in obvious fury. He glared at them as he painfully dragged himself back to his feet. "~I have to watch the day my own parents were slain before me every time a soulsnatchingwraith gets near me! I'll not let you hurt another hatchling like that!~"

"~You have faced a soulsnatchingwraith and still remain? We would be honored for you to translate our grievances to the prey honorable speaker.~" the alpha female said humbly before bowing to Harry with the rest of the raptors quickly following suit.

"How did you do that?" the older man half demanded in a whisper of awe.

"I, er, talked to them? You can't tell anyone that I can do stuff like this though since I'll get in a lot of trouble, government cover up kind of trouble," Harry warned. The four other humans nodded wary understanding which Harry took to be agreement before continuing. "They've agreed to let me translate rather than cause a fight. One of them called you egg snatchers. Wanna explain that one?"

"We passed by their nest earlier. At the time one of my students was still with us. Unknown to the rest of us he thought it was a grand idea to take a few eggs back for research and to write his dissertation on. I told him no and tried to make it clear that it would just get the rest of the pack after us but he went behind our backs and did it any way. When we found out a couple of hours ago I stopped anyone from damaging the eggs or leaving them where some other predator could get at them. I knew that they needed to be returned and if the pack found us without them they would assume they had been destroyed and kill us in revenge. By the way, my name is Alan Grant, and these are the Kribys, Paul, Amanda, and their son Eric. The rest of our group are either dead or probably wish they were dead. We had just come to the island to retrieve Eric and Mr. Ben, who is dead, after they were in an accident just off the coast," Dr. Grant explained. "My student is probably lying dead at the bottom of the cliff in the pterodactyl enclosure. We wanted to return them, we just couldn't figure out how without getting eaten by either the raptors or the Tyrannosaurus Rex."

"Wait, they're dinosaurs?" Harry asked with a blink of shock.

"Of course they are. We're on one of the dinosaur islands near Costa Rica... How hard did you hit your head when you fell down?" Eric asked seriously.

"Fuck," Harry swore, unintentionally making both humans and raptors nervous.

"~Honored Speaker?~" one raptor asked nervously.

"~The eggsnatcher was discovered and cast from the group for being an eggsnatcher. They did not know how to return the eggs without further incurring your wrath so they kept them safe knowing you would find them. They understand how you value your hatchlings and had no wish to cause you distress. The eggs are being returned with many apologies for the risk to your eggs and for the trespass of your territory. They came here only to retrieve their own hatchling and leave.~" Harry explained quickly and succinctly. Every human there could tell when the raptors relaxed and more than one came out of the leaves and bushes to stand behind their leader.

"~We will allow the prey to leave with their hatchling, Honored Speaker.~" the alpha female informed him solemnly. "~We once more take charge of the pack's eggs and thank the prey for the care they have taken with our eggs. You would be welcome among our pack should you choose to stay.~"

"~Why do you think I need a pack?~" Harry asked cautiously.

"~You said so yourself when you fell, Nestmates gone,~" she offered solemnly.

"~They are gone but it is more that they are no longer pack than that they are dead.~" Harry admitted with a deep sigh. "~They expect me to lead and fight against a threat much older and more experienced when I am still barely more than a hatchling, a juvenile. I want nothing to do with the dominance fight that has killed so many among the packs, families. Yes, he killed my parents but I was barely hatched. I don't remember them. They expect me to be alpha but treat me like an omega and I don't know what to do. I am different from these four but ones like them hurt me as a hatchling and keep hurting me. What do you do when there is no territory, no pack, no nestmates, and danger wherever you look? The threat is the only other speaker in the territory we live in and he sees me as a threat. I don't know why and the only times I've been near him he tries to kill me so I can't ask. The ones who would be my nestmates and caretakers hurt me or encourage me to walk into danger to protect them. I don't know what to do.~"

"~The prey has taken poor care of a precious speaker!~" one raptor off to the far left hissed in outrage, only to be snapped at to be quiet by the one next to her.

"~I have to return if I can. Something special happened the first time the other speaker tried to kill me. I am told that I was marked to be the only one who can stop him.~" Harry explained sadly, showing his scar as proof.

"~You will translate for the prey. You will not lie. You will come and visit us in the times to come and bring these prey with you," the alpha female ordered. Harry nodded resignedly and waited for what he was to translate. "~Tell the prey they are to take you with them when they leave. That you are their hatchling now and that better care needs to be taken with you. You will explain to them _everything_ about your lost nestmates, your sour nest, and the speaker you must kill. There are some tales about the older one, he protected hatchlings not his own when we first became free to hunt. If they are not a true pack you go with the old one, he will care for you as his own.~" 

Harry had a sour look as he turned to relay the message while the raptors peacefully took the eggs, disappearing into the surrounding forest.

"I'm supposed to go with you and that I'm your _hatchling_ now. I'm also supposed to explain what my life has been like uptil now and that if you guys aren't going to stay together Mr. Grant is supposed to be the one to take care of me from now on. They've heard tales about how you protected some other kids before and think you'll do a good job taking care of me. I'm also supposed to visit them sometime in the future," Harry explained moodily.

"Why?" Alan Grant asked as they cautiously made their way to their own feet.

"They asked what I was cussing about when I arrived. Predators that big have really good noses so I wasn't even going to try to lie. They decided that I need my own pack. Since I wouldn't go with them and you guys took good care of the eggs you were a good choice to make sure I wasn't hurt again. They called me speaker, honored speaker, and precious speaker. At least they aren't angry at you for the eggs. I told them that you had banished the egg snatcher from the group as soon as you found out and that you didn't know how to return the eggs. They seemed satisfied with that and the fact that the eggs seemed okay," Harry told them with wry amusement. He immediately felt a snap in his chest as a warmth spread through it making him feel good. He immediately recognized the magic for what it was and realized, with a groan, that he'd made a verbal magical contract with the raptors.

"What's wrong?" Alan asked worriedly.

"I just realized my agreement to go with you guys and explain was a legal contract enforced by magic. Before you freak out and say magic isn't real, it is and that's part of what I'm going to have to tell you about. I don't even want to know what will happen if I try to get out of it. The upside is that since telling you guys was part of the requirements I don't think I'll get in trouble for explaining or using magic in front of you," Harry explained with more than a little chagrin.

"Well, you can tell us on our way off this island and we'll go from there," Alan suggested as they all started walking again.


	2. Off the Island

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> You guys know this is part of why I never finish? You encourage me to write more and I cave like a falling souffle.... how many of you are subscribed to _me_ rather than to my individual stories any way? This fic was up less than 24 hours before you started reading it!  
>  ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Harry, very reluctantly, explained first about magic and Hogwarts. Next he explained what he knew about Voldemort (idiot terrorist who wants me dead) and his followers (idiot terrorists who want me dead for surviving Voldy's attack and half killing him in the process as a baby). He explained the fame and how terrified everything associated with it made him feel. It was when they finally got around to discussing his home life and how he no longer had any friends that they really had to drag it out of him.

"So, what about your family? How do they feel about all of this?" Amanda asked curiously and more than a little sad about what they had been told. None of them expected the bitter laugh that came out of his mouth.

"Harry?" Alan asked worriedly, stopping the younger man and making him face the paleontologist.

"They would rather see me dead. In their words they tried to beat the magic out of me. The only problem with that is that its not just in our blood but in our very bones. I don't know for sure but I think that fully rejecting it kills whoever tries. I'm pretty sure it can be sealed away, possibly ripped out of someone, but willingly rejecting it? And the side effects for ripping it out or sealing it away? I don't have a damn clue. I was to busy trying to stay alive for even doing most of my school work right," Harry explained bitterly. "I really thought how they treated me was normal until I stayed with the Weasleys during summer hols just before my second year. The Weasleys have seven kids and not once did I see them starved, locked away, worked until they dropped, whipped with a belt, told they were worthless, or made to clean up their own blood."

As Harry refused to look at them he never saw the look of horror on their faces and was completely blindsided when Dr. Grant pulled him into a hug. The violent flinch he gave almost had the man letting go. It was the low level shivering that stopped him from pulling away. None of them were surprised when Harry started to cry.

"What about your friends?" Eric asked, trying to change the subject.

"My friends? What friends? They decided that I was a danger to them because some lunatic keeps trying to kill me. Its not like I'm trying to get into danger or ever ask them to come with me. Then I stumbled over a meeting between most of them and the Headmaster. They were discussing how much they were getting _paid_ to be my friend and keep anyone else from being my friend. Do you have any idea.... Well at least Luna and Neville are probably still my friends. Luna, definitely... I'm not sure about Nev or the twins for that matter... Professor Snape was at least consistent and never lied to me." Harry rambled tiredly, his voice muffled with how his face was pressed into Alan's chest.

"Harry, you're going to hate my solution but it should keep you safe, or at least safer. Do you want to hear it?" Alan asked gently. Harry nodded fervently into his chest. "When we get off this island we go to the press and explain that someone knocked you out and we found you on the island. We also found out that you've been abused and from what you've said someone is trying to turn you into an assassin. That the people training you haven't been really training you and expect you take out more than a hundred people they have labeled terrorists. We explain that the raptors made it very clear I, and possibly the Kirbys are supposed to take care of you. Some of the details about Hogwarts and your home life are going to have to be published and you'll be examined by doctors whatever we do. When they ask about how you got to the island you honestly say you don't know how but that the last you remember was wherever you were before you fell out of that tree. They'll assume that you were knocked out with drugs or a hit over the head or something. Depending on how evil your bad guy is he'll either decide to leave you with your relatives, leave you alone, or try to kill you as soon as he realizes where you are. If we're lucky he'll try to contact you and we can actually talk all of this out or at least figure out where everyone stands. Are you willing to try?"

"That sounds like a better plan than mine," Harry admitted as he finally pulled away from the comfort of the older man's arms. "Your right I do hate it but it sounds like it might work and having the papers follow me for a couple of months will keep most people from trying to kidnap me."

"From the sound of it you've been kidnapped to much as it is," Alan teased gently. All of them were happy to see Harry smile softly at the comment. Just then they stumbled on to the beach and found lots of soldiers and a man in a suit waiting for them.

"You have to marry her now," Eric smirked. "She sent the marines and the navy."

"That she did," Alan said with a bright grin of his own.

They quickly joined the military people and hopped into a helicopter only to find Alan's student had been found and patched back together by the medic, lying in the back of the helicopter. Harry thought it was sort of funny how Alan's hat was returned but he also couldn't stop glaring at the other man for stealing the raptor eggs. As they flew away from the island they passed by a trio of Pterodactyls on their way to find a new nesting ground away from the islands.

The chaos when they landed on the mainland was immense, despite the presence of armed military personnel. The medical check on everyone but Harry was brief and to the point. Unfortunately for Harry he was too exhausted to cast much less maintain his normal glamours over his scars. To say that the doctors were horrified was an understatement. It didn't help that some idiot photographer managed to sneak his camera into the tent they were using. The photographer was immediately arrested but the doctors snagged the camera and used it to document the damage while Harry fought to stay awake.

Less than ten minutes sitting there and doing basically nothing knocked Harry out like a light. Thankfully, the rest of the group were able to summarize what Harry had told them. They explained how the raptors had pushed Harry and Grant together and managed to get across that the young wizard was like the eggs they were retrieving. Alan even willingly made the parallel that they some how remembered him protecting Hammond's grandchildren on the first island. All of them insisted that as far as the raptors were concerned Harry had been adopted by their small group but that Alan was his primary parent. Not one word about magic or Parseltongue was said to anyone.

A cry of shock and pure outrage from the medical tent had the small group of survivors dashing inside to check on Harry. The words "Harry Potter!" dragged them up short and set off a fervor of excitement and low level panic among several of the people there. At least one doctor pulled out a wand and rapidly started casting diagnostic spells at Harry only to be interrupted by Alan.

"Hey! What spells are you casting on him?!" Dr. Grant demanded harshly, quickly putting himself between Harry and the obvious wizard while the Kirbys took to keeping everyone else out of the tent. The doctor made a wait gesture and cast a translation spell at himself.

"You know about magic?" the doctor asked suspiciously with a heavy Spanish accent tinging his translated English.

"He accidentally made what he called a magical contract with the raptors and had to explain his life to the four of us. They insisted that I basically adopt him as part of it. He was able to speak to them with some weird hissing language that he called Parseltongue," Alan said suspiciously. The doctor blinked at him in surprise before shrugging and treating Dr. Grant as Harry's guardian.

"Please remember to formalize the adoption bond at our local magical government office. It will keep those idiot British from sending him back to whoever is abusing him and will legally allow you to know about magic. Our magical government will require a full accounting under the influence of truth serum, partly due to his celebrity status among magicals. As for what I was casting on him... they were simple diagnostic charms to check his health and any injuries he might have," the Doctor said with a shrug.

"Can you cast a spell that will give you his complete medical history since birth?" Grant asked with a grim determination.

"Yes, of course. That was the next one I was going to cast. Though usually we need the permission of the parent or guardian if the person is under 16," the doctor answered with more than a little surprise.

"Then as his new guardian you have my permission. In fact I'm requesting it and would like as many copies as possible to be distributed to your government, whatever hospital or practice you work at, and at least three copies for me. In other words I want the records to go to as many proper authorities as possible. I also want it as proof that he's been mistreated so that he can never be forced back," Grant ordered, reluctantly moving out of the way so that the magical doctor could get back to work.

The doctor nodded grimly before setting to work. The results of the medical history had more cries of out rage as even more of the doctors pulled out wands. The furious Spanish discussion and issued commands reminded Alan of being in the middle of an important surgery. He quickly shuffled himself out of the way as the magical doctors took to healing Harry with a fervor.

"Is he going to be okay?" Eric asked, having snuck up next to Grant at some point.

"He should be but from what I understand there was a lot of damage that hasn't healed right," Alan explained grimly. "If I ever meet his relatives I will gladly feed them to the Spinosaurus or the Raptors."

"Dr. Grant? Mr. Potter is magically exhausted which is very dangerous for a young wizard like him. He will need strict bed rest for at least a week and close monitoring. I would like to contact the Medi-witch at Hogwarts for her copy of his medical files as some of his readings don't make sense," the doctor informed him, frustration clear in his voice.

"Ask for a Professor Snape as well and don't mention Harry's name more than you have to. We don't want Dumbledore here. From what the raptors made him tell us that old man is forcing him into being an assassin or some sort of miracle hero," Alan explained shortly before shooing Eric off back to his parents. 

The doctor nodded grimly and disappeared to find an international floo. The Kirbys gave their statements and said their goodbyes before leaving for home. Dr. Alan Grant remained by Harry's side as he filled out the adoption paperwork, filed them and submitted to the questioning under truth serum. During the wait for Professor Snape and Harry's file Dr. Grant discovered that general magical healers also had to hold a non-magical medical doctorate or nursing degree. He also discovered that in Costa Rica if you were in the medical field you were told about magic to help provide proper treatment. Healers and Doctors were also considered to be neutral in any dispute and to intentionally harm one was seen as blasphemy punishable by execution or lynching.

Alan was relieved to find out that children were normally seen as precious gifts and protected at all costs. This fact also painted both Dumbledore and Voldemort in a very bad light and made him wonder how powerful the two were. It was clear to him that neither felt any sort of responsibility to obey the unwritten rules about magical children that had just been explained to him. The low burning fury that curled in Alan's belly at the thought made him want to feed them both to Rexy. Right as Alan was beginning to plot how to make it happen Professor Snape swept into the tent, a copy of Harry's file in hand.

The potions master stopped dead at the sight of the scarred battered body of his student on the low cot. He gave a low oath before setting the file down and starting his own round of diagnostics. He was concentrating so fiercely that he never noticed Alan observing him from his own seat near by.

"Potter, you are a menace," Severus said in complete exasperation as he finished his diagnostics. Moving to look at what the other healers had compiled he went white at seeing the full medical history. "I'll kill the old fool! He promised the brat was safe! Pampered even!"

"So you didn't know," Alan observed making the spy jump as he whipped around, wand out, and bodily shielding Harry's still sleeping form. A moment of tense silence passed before Snape finally answered.

"No, I didn't. I was led to believe he was raised like a prince and wanted for nothing. These results clearly show that I was lied to and my vow to protect him worthless. The only reason I'm not dead is that I had no idea and no access to help him," Snape admitted gruffly. "I tried to puncture his ego when I could without raising suspicions because to much confidence could very easily get him killed. Especially if he acted like his father, blasted bully that he was."

"You were one of his victims then," Alan observed quietly. Severus inclined his head in acknowledgement but didn't say anything else. Sighing deeply Alan decided to trust this dark clad man who clearly cared for his new son. "He saved our lives, talked the Velociraptors out of eating us and let us return their eggs safely. Unfortunately during his discussion with them he accidentally made a verbal magical contract. The end result had him explaining his life to us and required that I adopt him. The paperwork is already filled out and filed. Harry said that you never lied to him but what I want to know is who you're loyal to. Your own words told me that you're involved, probably beyond simply being one of his teachers. Harry's words told us of the civil war and the fact that you all expect him to play the part of King Arthur or Merlin."

"I, Severus Tobias Snape, swear on my life and magic that Harry James Potter is my liege lord and true master despite my position as spy in the ranks of Dumbledore's Order and the Dark Lord's Death Eaters. So Mote It Be," Snape swore in a low voice. The bright flash of light told them both that the oath had been acknowledged but the traditional brief lumos afterwards was what proved it to be true.

"I was fascinated with the connection between liegeman and lord when we studied Medieval history in school. I do know what that oath entails and I suppose that enforcing it with magic just makes it even more binding," Alan said with resignation, giving the other man a nod of respect. "Alright, I'll accept that you're Harry's man and don't belong to either of the idiots trying to get him killed. I didn't change his name when I filed the adoption papers since I think it should be Harry's choice. I'll see if I can set you up as the legal proxy if I can't either get there in time or don't understand what's being discussed. Hell, if we use a magical contract we can probably make it so I have to fully understand or the decision goes to you."

"That wouldn't be wise. My position as spy in both camps is tenuous at best and keeping the brat alive on top of it all is taxing," Snape explained softly, relaxing enough to lower his wand. "The information would get out and both sides would question _why_. You have to be able to override my decision if I indicate that I shouldn't be the one to decide."

"Fair enough," Alan said grudgingly. "The only friend he's sure is actually a friend at the moment is someone named Luna. He indicated that a Neville and who he called the twins are possibly still his friends. He had trouble even explaining that he caught the others discussing being paid to be his friend. Apparently Dumbledore assigned them as his watch dogs and to keep anyone else from being his friend. A lot of what happens at that school confuses him and he doesn't actually have the chance to study properly with people trying so hard to kill him. I have no idea if any subjects require extra background information but if they do he doesn't have it."

Severus grimaced at the explanation and the implications. He wasn't exactly happy to find that his charge and liege lord had been abused and was being purposefully isolated. In fact the thought of the rumors about his dangerous adventures made him sick if they were even partly true. He also wasn't happy with allowing himself to be blinded by honeyed words to Potter's situation. His actions had clearly made the whole thing worse and he thanked the gods that the brat hadn't died because of it.

"Any comments, Potter?" Severus asked the air, knowing that Harry had been feigning sleep the entire time.

"Git... not really," Harry muttered, opening his emerald green eyes to watch them both tiredly.

"The doctor said you were on bed rest for a week and that you were magically exhausted. I can tell that you're stubborn but you will be staying in bed for the whole week, maybe longer. I've filed the paperwork and you are officially my son," Alan told Harry. "Professor Snape has promised that he follows you, not Dumbledore or the Voldemort fellow. Since he used an obviously magical oath I'm inclined to believe him. I didn't change your name since I have no idea how you might feel about that."

"Thanks, and yeah, I heard," Harry said wryly. He didn't even have enough energy to force himself into a sitting position.

"The Headmaster does not know you are here. No one knows what happened when you disappeared. Thus far the Dark Lord hasn't punished anyone but he may not know you are missing. You've only been gone for a few days and Dumbledore has kept it quiet. The story is you fell into someone with an emergency portkey and it went off prematurely," Severus explained softly. "I am the only one who knows you were the patient who needed the file and myself from Hogwarts. I was also the one to duplicate your medical file and imply that one of my Slytherins was injured on a family vacation."

"What else, you're hold something back," Harry demanded suspiciously.

"Dumbledore ordered my return to assist in searching for you the moment I was able. He also implied that I was to kill whoever was in need of my services if it would take longer than twelve hours. I would not have done so but it shows how far he is willing to go to keep his hold on you," Severus admitted with a grimace. "I would advise taking your new father's name and hiding until you are at least combat trained in both magic and muggle methods."

"He shouldn't need them," Alan said darkly.

"He shouldn't yet he does," Severus agreed with a bitter smile.

Harry suddenly went rigid, biting the inside of his cheek until it bled as he fought the pain coming from his scar. The vision that accompanied it showed Voldemort learning of his missing status. The blinding fury he felt through the link though came from Voldemort's interrogation of his relatives. The only reason the Dursleys didn't die in the twenty minutes of his vision was that Voldemort was apparently keeping them as a gift to him. The connection was suddenly cut off as the Dark Lord realized he wasn't alone in his mind, intentional or not.

"What did you see?" Severus asked softly, releasing Dr. Grant from his restraining grip as they came over to check on him.

"He knows I'm missing and he has the Dursleys. Bastard just found out about my home life and decided that he was giving them to me as a gift. I didn't see anything else since he noticed me. He's probably going to call you. You should go floo Malfoy and have him tell Voldy that you can't make it... could you ask for a meeting between me and snake face? On neutral ground somewhere, maybe with the goblins as mediators? I want to know what's going on and why he keeps trying to kill me," Harry asked, gnawing on his lip a bit after having spat out the blood, which Snape immediately vanished.

"Harry, you're nearly an adult but for the moment you are still considered a child. If this is going to happen than I'm coming and this Dark Lord is going to swear a magical oath not to hurt anyone except in self defense. I'm also bringing a gun and Professor Snape is going to be there. We might as well pull him from position as spy since I don't intend to let you go back to that country until you're well able to defend yourself from just about anything," Alan told him sternly. Harry looked at him in surprise, never having been given even this minimal amount of care.

"Alright..." Harry agreed hesitantly. Severus quickly finished his examination and briefly disappeared to send the agreed upon message to the Dark Lord.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _"You have to marry her now," Eric smirked. "She sent the marines and the navy."_ \- quote/paraphrase from end of the movie 3.


	3. Slytherin Explanations

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Final chapter before bed....  
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"What are you thinking? You're clearly plotting something," Alan asked in suspicious amusement.

"I did promise to visit the raptors again. Voldemort can explain himself to the raptor pack," Harry said with an evil smirk. "If his reasons are good enough I may even ask them not to kill him."

"After what you told us I don't blame you one bit. But I want to introduce that Dumbledore fellow to Rexy. _She_ won't listen to his obviously silver tongue," Alan said wryly. Harry laughed at that but tired quickly and fell into a restless sleep before Snape returned.

"I am not certain that you understand the implications adopting the brat had for you," Severus said uncertainly, having checked Harry again after returning to the medical tent.

"Oh, I don't know all the details but I think I have decent idea. I just adopted a magical prince that has been raised by a corrupt regent and is still being hunted by his enemies. Enemies who, if we are insanely lucky, are not really enemies. All the story needs is a princess being guarded by a dragon for him to rescue and marry," Alan said wryly, brushing Harry's hair away from his face as he muttered a bit in his sleep.

"As cliched as it sounds... that's not far off," Snape said sourly. "Incidentally the Dark Lord has agreed to the meeting. I didn't specify when but did explain that Potter some how found himself outside of Britain and needs to find his way either to a Gringotts or back to Britain before the meeting can take place. I was instructed to assist him for the time being. I was also given permission to inform Dumbledore on the grounds that it will return him to English soil all the faster. I have not informed Dumbledore as of yet. Until Potter is healed enough to make serious choices or is put at risk I will maintain my position of spy to both sides."

"Reasonable. I wasn't expecting you to pull out immediately any way. We don't have anything set up to deal with the fall out," Grant admitted sheepishly. Severus just nodded, fully aware that this man was only thinking of getting the two of them out of a dangerous area and kept watching Harry sleep.

"You will need to select someone as his magical guardian or Dumbledore will retain the position. If you allow me to admit to both sides that you required a magical oath of protection for him then I can safely take that position. I would also advise on insisting he be resorted. He has changed much since his sorting," Severus advised softly. "As his adoptive father you will have to face a great deal of interest, not all of it good. If necessary you can call it a life debt. We have a magically binding version and many people owe him gratitude, a few are known to owe him magical life debts. It is something that will be immediately accepted and understood. It is also less complicated than the accidental magical contract and more highly revered in our society. A man fulfilling a life debt can literally get away with murder. Such a use is frowned upon and the person who called in the life debt is held responsible for the actions of the debtor but it can be done. I tell you so that you know the power of a life debt among magicals and because your son has a knack for getting into and out of impossible situations. I dare say that you will encounter them at some other time."

"I think I understand and thank you for the warning," Alan said equally softly. "What would it take to make you his magical guardian? I think your oath as a liegeman is close enough to count as an oath of protection."

"The proper paperwork and Potter's agreement since he is my liegelord. I can only assume that my previous oath to Voldemort is not in conflict or is no longer valid since there was no negative reaction from my mark," Snape explained. "I could request a copy from one of the officials hovering outside the tent if you would like to do it now?"

"Please do. We can ask Harry his opinion when he wakes for supper," Alan said tiredly. Snape nodded and spoke to someone outside.

"What did you mean your oath to Voldemort?" Harry asked tiredly once Snape returned. Clearly he had woken at some point during their quiet discussion and eavesdropped.

"The dark mark isn't just a slave brand. He requires an oath of loyalty and a demonstration of that loyalty before marking you. The oath its self is not required to be magical but that has more to do with the fact that he can kill through the mark. He has also previously marked unwilling supplicants, forced to participate by family or friends. When he still had his sanity and looks it wasn't like that. I don't know why he changed only that he did a few years before I was marked," Severus explained cautiously. The sound of clapping hands had the three of them turning to face the entrance to the tent where they saw Lucius Malfoy clapping softly.

"Very good, Severus. Our lord asked me to check on you and what do I find? You explaining our lord to the Savior and his new father," Lucius said tightly as he moved further into the tent. Harry watched him warily and Grant watched him as if he were facing a hunting raptor.

"The brat asked," Severus snapped with a scowl, easily slipping back into his snarky potions master persona.

"Now, now, I didn't say it was a bad thing. The Dark Lord badly wants the meeting with Mr. Potter. I was merely sent along to offer my assistance," Lucius said lightly.

"Mr. Malfoy, I would like to apologize for refusing Draco's hand of friendship and about Dobby. I was working on limited information and Ron refused Draco on my behalf. I had no say in the matter with how quickly he took offense. Though I don't think he realized that he had insulted both of us," Harry offered in as conciliatory a fashion as possible while lying down in bed. "I was told that only bad wizards come out of Slytherin house or I would have allowed the hat to place me there."

Both Slytherins took a minute to process this before Lucius burst into honest laughter and Severus just stood there stunned.

"No wonder I had such trouble keeping your neck intact," Severus growled in exasperation. "You're one of my snakes hidden so deep in the lion's den that they think you're the pride leader! You do realize that you've earned yourself at least a month of detentions for managing to drag yourself half way around the world?"

Harry shrugged, completely uncaring about the punishment before grinning at them impishly. "At least I never have to go back to the Dursleys no matter what happens. I hope he feeds them to Nagini! Even if it was gross to watch him feed that poor muggle man to her before fourth year."

"You're going to be a nightmare to raise and keep safe, aren't you?" Alan asked with resignation. Harry hesitantly shrugged while his new father watched him carefully. "Alright, how do you feel about dogs? I might as well get you a guard dog to help keep you out of trouble."

"I like dogs but we're only allowed one pet at Hogwarts and I've already got an owl, Hedwig," Harry explained, not entirely adverse to the idea but still not thinking it would work.

"I suggest you focus on your meeting with the Dark Lord before considering getting another pet," Severus said dryly.

"I'll have to get a compendium of magical animals first any way. Might as well make sure that they'll get along and it will be smart enough to help him if something happens," Alan said teasingly. He was a little surprised at the thoughtful looks both adult wizards gave Harry at the suggestion.

"Giving him Dobby didn't exactly work," Lucius said thoughtfully. Noticing Harry's surprised look he explained. "I don't kill children and you are the same age as Draco, heaven forbid someone like the Dark Lord targeted him. I am also intimately aware of how insane some of the Death Eaters are. I have no idea why you didn't bond with that elf. Your heir training should have told you how and why they need to be bonded to a wizard or family."

"What heir training?" Harry asked warily. The flat out shock on both Slytherin faces made him worry that he had said something wrong.

"Dumbledore has gone too far," Lucius hissed angrily. "When the other school governors hear about this he will be lucky not to be brought up on charges!"

"Mr. Malfoy... did you actually know what the diary was? Did you know what it would do?" Harry asked suspiciously, wondering if he had completely misread the man.

"No, only that it was a dark object and that it had hurt Draco during the summer. I fully expected Arthur or Molly at least to be suspicious enough to search the girl's things after I returned them. Then it would have been discovered and properly disposed of by a ministry team. The chit didn't even show her parents when she found it," Lucius grumbled, giving them what Harry fought not to call an adorable pout.

"Maybe you should make sure the ministry has an anonymous drop box or something for stuff like that? The diary possessed Ginny and sent a giant Basilisk into the school. Its body is still in Slytherin's chamber if you want to see it when we get back?" Harry offered, snickering at the dumbfounded looks on all of their faces.

"Well, that certainly explains why you weren't that worried about the raptors," Alan observed, still mentally reeling at the thought of facing a basilisk, never mind a giant one. Severus was called over to the entrance of the tent and handed several rolled parchments before returning to hovering over Harry.

"Did you pay attention to the paperwork we were talking about while you pretended to sleep, brat?" Severus drawled as he sorted through the forms he'd been given.

"Yeah, and I don't mind if its you. As long as you stop being such a git at least some of the time," Harry said cheerfully.

"Alas, your ultimatums will not change who I am, nor will they change the amount of detentions you have," Severus smirked at the tired teen before filling out his portion of the paperwork and handing the rest to Dr. Grant, who quickly filled out his sections. They all watched it disappear for automatic filing.

"What was that?" Lucius asked archly.

"A change of magical guardian," Alan said with a smirk. "I'd say that Dumbledore hasn't been treating my new son with the proper care, wouldn't you?"

"Certainly not," Lucius agreed with a slow smile.

"Oh, stop your plotting. I had to swear an oath of protection for the boy to even get near him," Snape grumbled good naturedly.

"And he ordered you to help the brat get back to Britain faster, clever," Lucius smirked so hard Harry had the disturbing thought that he was trying to _twinkle_.

"I'm almost tempted to ask for the meeting back on the island but then we'd have to deal with more than the raptor pack," Harry said morosely.

"Kid, you've got a scary mind," Alan said with a snort of laughter. He could see that Harry was serious but he also knew he was in a position to veto the idea so he wasn't overly concerned.

"Master Snape?" a Spanish accented voice called from just beyond the tent flap.

"Yes?" Snape snarled, ripping open the tent flap to glare at the speaker. The man squeaked and shoved a few parchments into his hands before bolting.

"So we aren't the only ones you terrorize," Harry snickered. Snape just rolled his eyes and glanced through the obvious paperwork. A curse left his lips when he realized what he was looking at.

"What?" Lucius asked with almost bird-like curiosity.

"They were pulled off of one of those islands turned into a Dinosaur preserve that the muggles managed to breach. Some idiot has managed to get the paperwork and galleons to make it into a full fledged integrated theme park. They're going to use magic to speed up the growth of the new Dinosaurs and there's at least one military sponsored _Velociraptor_ project. Those things went from unknown to Class XXXXX creatures within 10 seconds, and that was because they played with the assessor!" Snape growled in fury. "Its supposed to be operational within the next four years if not less."

"The raptors I talked to were nice enough," Harry told him, making the man freeze mid-stalk.

"I take it they understand Parseltongue?" Severus asked with a dangerous calm. Harry nodded happily, thinking of how Hagrid would react to having one for a pet.

"Calm Severus, calm. The boy is fine. See? He's lying there, grinning like a fool at some happy thought. This is not Draco but _Harry_ , the stubborn lion with impossible luck," Lucius soothed his long time friend. Severus snapped, growled, and grumbled but finally calmed enough to conjure a spare chair and sit down with a huff.

"At least it makes the life debt more understandable as well as your agreement to adopt him," Severus muttered balefully, clearly put out at this new information, though it didn't stop him from offering to help while doling out punishment for recklessness. "If your father doesn't insist on a re-sorting I most certainly am. By the time the healers release you from bed rest I expect an essay on your home life before Hogwarts and a separate essay describing what you and your cohorts got up to for each year. Three feet minimum and no more than six. In exchange I will assist you with potions and I will cut back on insults to your birth father."

Harry perked up noticeably at this completely unexpected offer. He opened his mouth almost immediately to agree but paused at Snape's raised finger.

"There is, however, the accompanied expectation that you will put more effort into your school work and come to me should you find yourself in need of aid or otherwise struggling," Severus warned. "Regardless of if the old fool refuses your re-sort or allows it, you will have a room in my quarters where you can stay, just as Draco does. Draco is my godson and as your magical guardian, especially with your unique case, I will treat you as my own son while at school. I take such things seriously and will keep Dr. Grant up to date on any progress you make or mischief that you get up to."

"I expect you to keep up with your normal schooling. I want you to be able to survive in the normal world as well," Grant gave his own stern warning. "If you aren't up to your age level we'll work on that. Your past mistreatment actually helps in explaining why I would be home schooling you or expect you to learn something you can't talk about with non-magical people. From what you've said, Hogwarts is a boarding school so when you come home for the summers we'll just say you were struggling with the material and call it tutoring. Explaining that we decided to run through everything that you would learn in a normal school year actually isn't that far fetched either if its just a review."

"When am I supposed to do all of this? Between Quidditch, classes, homework, and people trying to kill me my school work is already suffering. Not to mention I have no idea where to find any of the information in the library," Harry demanded in obvious irritation.

"Have you tried asking your teachers for help?" Alan asked in concern.

"I get the 'that's nice now go off and play' treatment or they try to kill me," Harry said in very pointed exasperation.

"Only the Defense Professors repeatedly try to kill you and I've already offered to help you with work in my class," Severus snarked, rolling his eyes at the teenage drama.

"Voldemort possessing Quirrel, Fluffy, and Norberta the dragon in first year; The dark magic diary and the basilisk in second year; Sirius and the Dementors in third year; The stupid tournament in fourth year... need I go on?" Harry asked in clear irritation.

"No, you've quite made your point," Severus conceded with pursed lips. "I will arrange for you to have tutoring while at school, both in muggle subjects and in the magical ones as needed."

"I will pay for the lessons and Draco can join him," Lucius offered shrewdly. "I offer this in the hope that the rift between House Malfoy and House Potter is not yet to wide a chasm."

"On behalf of my charge, I accept the offer of truce in the spirit in which it was given," Severus agreed quickly, easily following the formal pureblood protocol that Lucius had invoked.

"My, that sounded... formal," Alan commented with a raised eyebrow.

"Blood feuds and insulted honor are still active elements among magicals," Severus explained. "This also includes honor duels and other more extreme forms of retaliation."

"Soo... what's it mean when you're challenged to a duel and the challenger doesn't show up?" Harry asked curiously, at their interested looks he explained. "Draco challenged me to a wizard's duel in first year, Ron accepted for me, and Draco never showed up but Filch did."

"It means that I need to have a serious talk with my son and you are owed a forfeit from the Malfoy family," Lucius said tiredly, rubbing at the bridge of his nose to try and stave off a headache.

"I definitely need those essays," Severus muttered under his breath. Harry snickered and wondered when he'd be able to force himself out of bed.

"Have you eaten?" Lucius asked politely. Harry shook his head no. In a trice they were each served a sumptuous meal courtesy of the Malfoy family house elves.

"Definitely need that creature compendium," Alan said staring after the house elves before turning to his perfectly cooked steak and mashed potatoes. They dove into their meals with obvious hunger only for Harry to fall asleep over his half empty bowl of soup.

"He really can't travel like this but we can at least move him to a hotel until he's off bed rest," Severus pointed out with a resigned sigh at the inadvertent mess Harry had made. They agreed on that, Lucius offering to pay and sort out transportation details as well as any legal documents while Harry slept like the dead.


	4. Interesting Conversations

Harry slept through the night on the emergency cot in the medical tent. The healers ran him through more tests the next day and agreed to let him try traveling by short-rang portkey. They also extracted a promise from Snape that he would be on hand in case of complications. A portkey to a nearby magical hotel was quickly arranged. Lucius, again insisted on paying but he also insisted they share a suite. Snape and Harry were under any illusions that Lucius wasn't reporting their progress to Voldemort. Alan's culture shock though was a source of amusement for all of them. Harry snickered as he kept hearing his new father muttering under his breath about impossibilities and chanting magic as if to convince himself of its existence.

Harry wasn't pleased to be reminded that they either had to tell Dumbledore that he was Snape's emergency patient or the Potion Master's position would be at risk. He did agree that changing the man's balancing act between both sides wasn't a good idea yet. Lucius' return to the shared suite put an end to the discussion but everyone saw Harry's resigned nod. Severus wasted no time in sending a message via his doe patronus, much to Harry and Lucius' obvious interest.

Alan took Severus aside to ask about the rest of the staff, what Harry learned at Hogwarts, and if any of the staff were possibly trustworthy. The Head of Slytherin gave the paleontologist a quick run down of what was taught and explained that Quidditch was a sport. Since Severus had admitted that very few muggle subjects were taught Alan decided that they would be covered during the school holidays. He also decided to see if some of his fellow professors would be willing to help out and run a version of a mail-in class to help Harry catch up on his regular education. That's when Lucius chose to ask something that surprised all of them.

"Dr. Grant, how do you plan to conduct Mr. Potter's heir training for his Lordships?" Lucius asked curiously.

"What Lordships? What training?" Harry asked blankly, still confused about the matter of heirship training since Lucius had gone off into a rant instead of explaining the day before. "I didn't know I was a wizard until my eleventh birthday when Hagrid came and got me."

"You can trust him, brat. At least if there's something wrong legally he can give you advice. He's trained as a Barrister and has more influence than most. He's also probably still itching to ask how Draco managed to insult both you and Mr. Weasley at the same time," Severus said in obvious resignation. He knew that his long time friend would get the full knowledge of exactly how badly Dumbledore had failed, one way or another.

"What's a Barrister?" Alan asked in obvious interest while Harry seriously thought about the possibilities.

"I believe you Americans call us Lawyers," Lucius answered with a smirk, enjoying Grant's automatic grimace.

"Better be careful around Rexy if you ever go to one of the islands. Her first human meal was a lawyer who abandoned a pair of kids to her hunger," Alan said seriously as Harry's face lit up in recognition.

"The kids that the raptors said you protected! Wait, you actually faced down a T-Rex?! I know you faced down the raptors okay before I got there but a _Rex!?_ " Harry half babbled. His obvious interest and enthusiasm had all three adults suppressing smiles.

"I didn't exactly have a choice at the time," Alan said ruefully. "It was protecting them that made me realize that my fear of children was completely unjustified. I'm just not good with the really small ones."

"You never did say exactly how you landed on that island. Care to explain?" Lucius asked with an elegantly arched eyebrow.

"You were in the Department of Mysteries... I sorta fell through this weird melted hole in wall. I figured that a stray spell must have blasted it," Harry admitted sheepishly.

"The prophecy orb?" Lucius asked softly, carefully watching his face in case he tried to lie.

"Fell through separately and went... elsewhere. There was some sort of magical connection to it that snapped between falling through the hole and landing in that tree. Falling from the tree wasn't much fun either but at least the snapped connecting left me limp enough not to break bones as I fell," Harry said thoughtfully. He saw no problem telling them what had happened to the orb. After all it wasn't like they could track it, right?

"Then it will forever remain a mystery to all but the one who heard it. Seers are rarely conscious when they give a prophecy," Lucius explained, thoughtful over how Harry had felt his connection to the prophecy record snap. "What worries me is that connection you felt snap. It is possible that the prophecy became void when you fell through the... lets call it a portal for the moment. Now, that is likely just as well for all involved but it is possible to forcefully re-establish that connection. It is also possible that anyone who knows of it will attempt to force its fulfillment."

Harry grimaced at the thought but nodded his acceptance of the logic. Alan looked skeptical but the obvious relief on Severus' face had Harry focusing laser-like on him.

"What? What do you know that we don't?" Harry asked the potions master.

"Only the first two lines. I was the one to report it and it was Dumbledore who heard the whole thing. I still don't know why I was allowed to leave with even that partial knowledge of the prophecy when I was caught red-handed listening at the door. I also had no idea it was more than drunk ramblings and might be taken seriously. What bothers me is that this new information puts the Headmaster's interactions with you in a dangerous light. I might even go so far as to suggest having you trained at a different school for safety reasons," Severus admitted, refusing to look at his little lord or anyone else for that matter.

"Fudge and the Ministry will fight to bring him back. So will Dumbledore and our lord, possibly even going so far as to kill anyone who tries to keep Mr. Potter away. They also won't stand for him to be trained anywhere but Hogwarts where all sides can keep a relative eye on him," Lucius warned, wondering what was wrong with his friend and at the risk he had just taken. "Its not like he's been taking the boy for private meetings and intentionally involving him in the war."

The dead silence that greeted him and Dr. Grant had them looking at the two dark haired wizards in a combination of shock, righteous fury, and disgust at the Headmaster.

"I don't want Harry in any _private_ meetings with that man. Harry, if he calls you to his office you are not to go without Professor Snape or three other students. If there are more of you and he tries something at least one of you might get away to go for help," Alan ordered sternly. Harry looked at them all curiously but didn't argue the point, simply nodding his understanding.

As Dr. Grant he was more than familiar enough with academic politics and how blood thirsty they could be. Hell, it had taken three of them to get a psychopath posing as a Psychology teacher thrown off staff before he assaulted his sixth victim. The bastard had still walked free because the students he had tried to rape had been to terrified to press charges. Alan could be absolutely ruthless when he chose to, usually in the defense of one of his students. It was also one of the reasons he was so good at understanding the ancient predatory minds of the raptors.

"He thinks you are his spy. He's been threatening you with Azkaban, that's why you turned down all my offers to help you start an apothecary," Lucius said in furious realization. "We _know_ you hate teaching, especially the younger years. Blast it, Severus! You could have _told_ me he was threatening you. I know how much you cared about the boy's mother but you could have been a part of his life in a different way."

"And how exactly would I have managed that?! He's kept everyone away from the brat, feeding him drips and drabs of things he should have been told long ago to keep him in line!" Severus spat, suddenly facing Lucius' anger with his own fury. "Do you have any idea how often I have to put him in detentions just to keep a close enough eye on him that he doesn't get killed? How many times I've had to save his fool neck?! First year, a _Troll_ got in and he _fought it!_ Not to mention the old fool's blasted insistence at keeping a full grown Cerberus _inside_ the school guarding Flamel's ridiculous stone. Second year... I don't know what caused it but there were petrified students, not to mention his revelation that he was a Parselmouth, causing the school to turn on him. Third year was its own disaster with Black and the Dementors. Fourth year... well the tournament caused him more problems than just the tasks."

"And this year?" Alan asked with a deep sense of foreboding.

"This year we had a Ministry employee as a defense professor who refused to do anything but have us read a load of dragon dung posing as a textbook," Harry said with obvious disgust. "We could barely breath without her threatening teachers and students left and right with expulsion, being fired, or Azkaban. _Any_ magic, any fun, any music, any grouping of 3 or more got you a threat of expulsion, detention writing lines in your own blood, or a threat with Azkaban for yourself or your family. She was very proud saying that she had the full support of the minister and every objection was tantamount to treason. All I did was form a DADA study group and make sure everyone understood the material we were supposed to be covering this year."

"She had you using a _**Blood Quill!?**_ " Severus and Lucius practically shouted simultaneously. Harry instinctively flinched back into the bed, automatically bringing both men up short.

"Show me?" Severus asked gently. Harry warily extended his scarred hand for inspection, both wizards hissed in a combination of sympathy and fury.

"I don't think I like your British Wizarding World very much," Alan said ominously.

"If we weren't in the middle of a civil war with Mr. Potter at the very crux of the matter it would be far safer. The real problem is that he's hailed as a savior and an unintentional focal point for everything about this war," Lucius shot back absently, closely examining the words carved into the back of Harry's hand. "The ceasefire that his parent's death and his survival caused is breaking down."

"What are you fighting for? What are both sides fighting for?" Alan asked, quick to seize the opening.

"Dumbledore's faction, the so-called light, want to pander more to muggles and muggleborns, integrating their culture into our own to the point of suffocation. The eventual result will be our revelation to the non-magical community. It is very likely we'll once more face the inquisition and witch burnings. The Dark Lord, before his sanity some how came into question, wanted many things. This included the protection, monitoring, and possible removal of muggleborns from unsuitable muggle guardians, including those who abused their charges. It also includes the return of our heritage and the correct classification of magics that have been banned simply to make the muggleborns, most of whom don't stay anyway, more comfortable. In connection with both we want more stringent security measures to keep from being discovered with eventual complete separation," Lucius explained, finally looking up from his examination. "I can tell you that he's _more_ stable now than when he went after Mr. Potter's parents. Its almost as if a large piece of him has been returned to him or was anchored elsewhere and escaped to rejoin him."

"The diary! It, he said that he was a memory, more than a memory, a _piece_ of Voldemort from when he was 16! I was forced to kill the diary with a basilisk fang that had gotten lodged in my arm in second year when I rescued Ginny," Harry told them excitedly. It was the paleness of the older wizards that brought him up short in his excitement.

"A _Basilisk?_ " Lucius asked in horror. "Wait, didn't you say something about this yesterday? Before I got distracted by the mention of raptors and guardianship paperwork?"

"Yeah, don't worry, I killed it. That's how I got the fang stuck in my arm. Honestly, the hundreds of giant spiders Hagrid sent us to question were probably harder to get away from. I told you I'd show you the body and the chamber if you wanted," Harry's attempt at comforting him simply had them sitting down hard where they stood.

"So, how accurate are the stories?" Alan asked, his mind having gone analytical in an attempt to keep him from freaking out. He knew that if he did Harry might never trust him properly. He also wouldn't be able to do more than grab his new kid and try to run for the ends of the earth.

"Its a giant snake that has sharp teeth, venom that really burns when you've been bitten, a gaze that if you look at kills you dead, and if you just catch its reflection petrifies you. It also moves really fast and... I think its sentient but the one I fought seemed to be insane," Harry confided. "It was also over a thousand years old and really big."

"How are you even alive?!" Snape asked in a strangled voice, from his place on the carpeted floor next to Lucius.

"Fawkes brought me the sorting hat. It had Gryffindor's sword inside and then he plucked out the eyes of the Basilisk. He even cried on my arm where the fang and venom went in," Harry said with a shrug, staring at the ceiling since he _still_ couldn't sit up. At least he was able to stay awake for most of the day now.

"This is why he wasn't fazed by Dinosaurs," Lucius muttered, very green at the thought of such danger wandering the school where his _son_ was, not to mention the other children.

"I'm clearly not keeping a close enough eye on you. When we get back to Hogwarts you are moving into my quarters permanently. I don't care what house you're in. I also want four feet minimum on those essays but you have until a week after we've returned to England to give them to me," Severus said with a scowl as he and Lucius got to their feet. Harry grumbled a bit but could tell that Snape wasn't going to budge and his new father seemed relieved at the idea, so no help there.

"On another note, I've succeeded in sorting out all of the paperwork needed and arranged for a portkey once you've recovered enough to return to England. Dr. Grant, I've spoken with your dig site and University and they were happy to loan you to me for the moment. Ostensibly, I am a rich business man who has discovered a possible fossil on several of my many properties and want them evaluated. It helped that I was already unknowingly funding a few projects related to your University," Lucius explained, holding out several official looking pieces of paper. "In compensation for your time on this matter your dig funding has been extended for an additional two years. The dig will be maintained until you get back to it but otherwise left alone."

"That's... very generous of you," Alan said cautiously, accepting the paperwork and looking through it. Lucius waved it away as though it were nothing.

"It makes his life easier if you come with us," Severus pointed out with a derisive snort. "I would advise planning a press release now so that you can give it when you finally get mobbed for adopting the troublesome brat. I would also advise speaking with the goblins at Gringotts as they run practically our entire financial infrastructure."

Harry went off on excitedly explaining his trips to Gringotts and Diagon Alley after that and they spent the day telling silly stories. It was two days later when Harry was cleared to return to England via international portkey.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The reason I'm hesitant to use the bonded raptors part of the genre is that I found a fic (https://www.fanfiction.net/s/11689576/1/Raptor) that made the possibility all the more real to me. It is also one of the fics which helped to spawn this story in the first place. I have yet to receive an answer back whether my fellow author would be offended if I used such an integral part of her story (Even though, according to her profile, neither of us have a life). As a result I will seriously consider any suggested familiar bondings. I have thus far considered Raptors, T-Rex, Indominus, Triceratops, Pterodactyls, Brontosaurus, an ancient version of a Zebra, an ancient version of a Ferret, a Dragon (yes, I know, cliched but still awesome!), a Unicorn, a type of Winged Horse, a modern Raptor/Hawk (ie. fast hunting bird), and a Basilisk. Votes and alternatives are welcome!


	5. Portkeys and Early Returns

Harry and Alan both landed and immediately feel to their knees, unable to stay on their feet for different reasons. Severus cursed before scooping Harry up off the ground, dropping the battered copper kettle portkey in the process. Lucius sighed and helped Alan to his feet, vanishing the sick that fortunately hadn't splashed on anyone. Harry was out like a light by the time they had taken three steps away from the landing zone.

The bare concrete room of the arrival point gave Alan nothing to look at aside from the special ID pattern on the wall near the door. Lucius was fairly familiar with the international portkey station due to various unavoidable business trips so they had no trouble finding their way outside. Alan was surprised to recognize the famous Trafalgar Square across the street. They entered the Charing Cross metro station only to duck into the bathrooms so that Lucius and Severus could side-along apparate them somewhere else. Alan had just as much trouble with apparation as with portkey travel. He was just greatful that Harry was out cold.

"Where are we and are we going to do something like that again?" Alan asked with a groan, completely ignoring the smirking of the two Slytherins in favor of his misery and checking Harry.

"This is my London townhouse. It has protective wards that will help keep you both safe. I would ask Severus if he'd be willing to stay with you and help but knowing him he will only hide in the potions lab," Lucius said smoothly, leading them up to a very regal looking townhouse.

The white stone facade of the four story townhouse looked like a cross between an ancient greek temple and a modern ballroom's wall of glass windows, with the columns holding the windows in place. The front hallway was paneled in a patterned mix of light and dark woods. The front room they were led into, shared the paneling with the front hallway but had dark stained wood with plush cream cushions on the elegantly carved furniture. The heavy floral carpet nearly tripped Alan, making him glad that Snape was still carrying Harry. They each took one of the heavy chairs in front of the unlit fireplace as Severus gently laid Harry on the love seat-like couch.

"Unfortunately, the only reason the healers were willing to allow Potter to be moved so quickly, much less return to England was if I took responsibility. What you may not know Dr. Grant is that as a Potions Master I am only a step away from being a fully certified healer. Only swearing to our magically enforced version of the Hippocratic oath and filling out the paperwork remains. It is necessary for those in my profession so that we know what we're repairing when we make a new healing potion. Aside from the oath I am a medical professional, I simply deal more in making the medication then un-cursing the patient," Severus explained snarkily, a smile barely dancing around the corners of his lips. Even now he couldn't hide his passion for the art of potions.

"That didn't stop you from achieving a Defense Against the Dark Arts Mastery at the same time as your Potions Mastery," Lucius retorted with a snort, absently summoning an elf and demanding tea for the four of them.

Alan was getting used to the strangeness of magic and house elves. He was also certain that if he hadn't had to deal with running from Dinosaurs _twice_ he wouldn't be as accepting. The silly stories had helped too. Thankfully, he had taken at least one Anthropology course as a complementary elective to his degree and knew to observe a new culture before jumping to conclusions. One thing his teacher had rightfully harped on was that just because you were taught something doesn't make it universally true, accepted, right, or even _safe_ when interacting with a new culture. He was getting a crash course on the magical world. However, that didn't mean he yet knew enough to comment on something like the actions and presence of the house elves. No matter how much it resembled slavery.

"Perhaps you can explain why you haven't reintegrated with the rest of us? I can understand the original separation if it happened during the witch burnings but now...?" Alan asked carefully, hoping they wouldn't shut down on him. He was honestly curious about the answer but he also had his own suspicions.

"People, whether magical or not, are often frightened of what they don't understand," Severus said very carefully. "Harry has been on the wrong end of that fear at the school and in the public eye at least once in his short life."

"Like the way Harry's relatives treated him. It was one of the reasons the raptors said they were insisting on the adoption. Harry didn't explain much but from what he said I would dearly like to introduce them to the raptors or Rexy, along with that Dumbledore fellow," Alan said, nodding in understanding. The comment had both wizards staring in open mouthed shock at Alan and his son. "Just out of curiosity does the Wizarding World still ascribe to the practice of honor duels?"

The question jolted the two wizards out of their shock as they dumbly nodded. Alan nodded thoughtfully, trying his best to remember what that his brief foray into studying that time period had said about the practice.

"You can't engage one of us in a duel," Lucius said, obviously deeply disturbed even by the concept.

"All it would take is a hand gun and quick feet. We might not practice dueling like that any more but it hasn't been all that long since we've stopped. Less than 150 years? I think its still legal to duel in Texas, technically," Alan explained, still trying to think about what little he knew about dueling.

"Not if your opponent could cast silently and had mastered the spell so thoroughly as to eliminate the visual indicator, the 'light' that signifies the spell," Severus argued. He knew, he was one of the people who _could_ do just that.

"Then the best bet would be to immediately drop to knees or floor, possibly firing from the hip as you went down," Alan said speculatively. "But, yes, that would make it a lot more difficult."

"I suspect that the Immobulous spell, something similar, or some of the more comprehensive shield spells would stop the bullets. I am uncertain as I've never been foolish enough to attempt it," Severus pointed out.

"Alright, you've made your point. Individually it would be difficult if not impossible for someone without magic to stand up to a skilled magical adult. Children, mobs, and the military are a different matter entirely," Alan conceded, hiding a satisfied smile behind taking a sip of his tea.

"Exactly, which is why our lord is fighting for further separation rather than allowing Dumbledore to push for re-integration," Lucius said passionately. "The return of our own culture is really just a bonus and will help remind people _why_ we even needed to separate."

"Some of the same reasons that Jurassic Park was a bad idea. At least there it was set up almost like a zoo, complete with protections for the audience," Alan said affably. "But when sentient species are involved... cages simply don't work, or at least not for long. Anything with 3/4 the intelligence of a human or the intelligence of at least a human 8 year old can not be effectively contained against its will. There's too much problem solving ability in the mind of such a being. It might take a while but it will either break free or force the captors to free it. This fact and the fact that nature will always find a way to survive, was made infinitely clear with the original Jurassic Park mess... If you _ever_ tell Dr. Ian Malcolm I said any of that I will find a way to make you pay."

Severus just smirked at him and considered what had been said before nodding his agreement. From a purely non-magical stand point it was true and even adding magic into the mix didn't completely eliminate the concern. Since he'd actually read a few of Dr. Malcolm's papers and knew that the two of them had been on the island together during the first incident he wasn't surprised about the threat. Lucius on the other hand looked like he'd been hit over the head, apparently he hadn't thought about some of that.

"Although, I have to admit, before that idiot twigged the computers the park _was_ working even if the Dinosaurs were shy that day. Well, until Rexy decided to come out and play just as the power to the protective fences went down and the storm hit," Alan admitted with a sheepish shrug. "Do I think that the raptors at least would have some how escaped? Now that I know what I know, absolutely. The other Dinosaurs though seemed to be properly contained and taken care of."

"Then this Jurassic World project might work. Perhaps, after some time we can include the dragons or set up a similar facade elsewhere for them so that they are not so restricted. They, along with idiot loudmouths and the muggleborn's families, are some of the biggest threats to the Statute of Secrecy. If one of them left a reserve and flew over a heavily populated non-magical area..." Severus said thoughtfully. "Saboteurs are always a possible problem with large and carnivorous creatures safely interacting with the average person or wizard. They cause far to much chaos between escaping and being re-captured. Most don't think of it because the idea of a zoo or, in the case of someone like Lucius, a personal menagerie has been around long enough to be part of the background."

They were all distracted by Harry's turning over on the small couch only to fall the floor with a thump. He returned to partially to the land of the living with a groan and looked around. The look of sleepy confusion had all three men fighting not to coo, laugh, or call him cute.

"You look like a sleepy puppy," Severus said, unable to hold back his mirth. Harry made a cute sleepy sound as the Potion Master rose long enough to gently pick him off the rug and put him back on the couch.

"Why weren't we mobbed by reporters? If Harry is as important as you say he is," Alan asked softly as Severus returned to his seat and they watched Harry slip back into dream land.

"We came a day early and I claimed to be coming ahead to set up needed accommodations. The portkey office agreed to claim that they issued you three a separate portkey for tomorrow. We would have been dragged straight to the Ministry without the minor deception. As it is we still have to go there tomorrow to certify you as being allowed to know about our world. We will be ambushed by reporters, the Minister, and a few other important ministry employees. Which I can only guess at. It is also likely that Dumbledore will be there and insist on taking Harry away with him. _None_ of us can afford to let him," Lucius warned grimly. "One saving grace is that we've managed to explain to you why he can't attend school in the states. With the 'job' I offered you we can claim that you have moved here temporarily to allow Mr. Potter to finish his schooling. No doubt someone will claim it as laurels for the school and others will viciously object to you being anywhere near him, regardless of your status as his adoptive parent."

"We could always apply to Gringotts for a blood adoption. It would cut off any attempt to remove him as a parent," Severus suggested, looking at the paleontologist thoughtfully.

"Blood adoption?" Alan asked cautiously, his curiosity piqued.

"A potion that would essentially add you as one of his parents. It would add your blood to his and subtly change his genetics. You would be acknowledged as one of his blood parents and would have all of the same rights as a birth parent," Severus explained. "We need to work quickly because the ministry and Dumbledore _will_ try to remove him from your care. Which, if you remember, was one of the reasons for signing the magical guardianship papers."

"Why not have," Harry yawned sleepily, not really awake enough to be aware of what he was saying, before continuing. "Snape do the blood thingy and say that was the only way you'd let me go back to Hog-hog... school? E'pecially after the raptors and me cursing about having to fight peoples that want me dead..."

"You would be taken as an ignorant muggle but that might not be a bad thing," Lucius said, eyes narrowed in thought.

"I am an ignorant muggle," Alan said wryly. "We do acknowledge a form of life debt but its usually a silent or private thing between the people involved. Its not a legal obligation like the way Professor Snape explained it is to your people. I think I'll tweak the people with my statement tomorrow when I explain what happened."

"Or we can brave Diagon Alley now and sort out the blood adoption for the two of you. Severus, do be kind enough to share one of the peper ups on your person with your new son," Lucius told them, standing and looking at them expectantly in an attempt to get them moving. Severus scowled and rolled his eyes at his friend before gently waking Harry and feeding him a pepper up.

"What are we doing?" Harry asked alertly as the steam effect faded away. He knew they were doing something, probably something important, if the Potions Master was willing to feed him a pepper up. He knew he was supposed to be resting and that they had taken a risk with the portkeys and apparating.

"Going to the bank and giving you another parent," Alan said in obvious amusement.

"Who?" Harry asked suspiciously.

"Me, brat," Severus snarked, eyes dancing with mischief.

Harry's first reaction was to protest, vehemently but he stopped himself and actually thought about it. After twenty minutes of thinking while the adults patiently waited he reluctantly nodded his agreement. Alan helped him to his feet and they all headed for the front door before disappearing to the Leaky Cauldron.


	6. Gringotts

Their arrival at the Leaky Cauldron went relatively unnoticed. This was partly because Harry's scar was covered by his bangs and partly because the three men seemed to be instinctively shielding him. Harry nearly burst out laughing at the stray thought of them as raptors protecting him as their baby. Thankfully he'd managed to contain his snickers until they got to the portal into Diagon.

The look on Alan's face when he saw the wall open and Diagon beyond it was priceless. It also made a warm feeling build in Harry's chest at sharing something so important to him with the man, as if he was really his father. Alan did nothing to dissuade him from thinking such things when he pulled Harry close as they walked through the crowd. Harry felt more than a little uncomfortable between the crowd and his nominal inability to get out of Alan's gentle grip but he forced it down. He knew that Alan wouldn't hurt him but he also remembered how much Vernon had hurt him whenever he was within arm's reach.

As they ducked into the bank Harry saw a flash of blond hair matched with an acid green quill stuck behind one ear. The glee he saw in her eyes and the way she was obviously heading towards them had lead curling in his gut. Then he remembered her animagus form and wondered if he could get the goblins to make sure she wasn't in the upcoming meeting. It would also give them something to be aware of if someone attempted to rob the bank again. That decided he opted to ignore her if she accosted them inside the lobby. She did.

"You who! Harry dear! What on earth are you doing here? And in the company of _Lucius Malfoy_?" She said cheerfully as she trotted up to the group. Harry just groaned and buried his face in his hands.

"Friend of yours?" Alan asked, eyeing the witch warily.

"No!" Harry said vehemently. "She's supposedly a reporter but she's just a lying bitch."

"Now, now, Harry, she may be a lying bitch but she is a _popular_ lying bitch. Let me handle this one," Lucius muttered low enough that only their group could hear it. He quickly raised his voice only to drawl at the reporter, sneer clear on his face. "Miss. Skeeter, if you are that desperate for an interview kindly contact Mr. Potter via his guardian. If you had written such things about my son as you have done about Mr. Potter you would be in Azkaban right now.

Skeeter stopped dead and actually looked at their group. The nearly unanimous glares from all four of them had her hesitating before deciding to ignore it and keep going.

"Considering it was his magical guardian who gave me permission to write whatever I like about the Savior I really don't see a problem," Rita said sweetly. The way their eyes hardened told her that perhaps she had said something wrong.

"As the Headmaster is no longer Mr. Potter's guardian in any fashion I suggest you consider that permission revoked," Severus said flatly, itching to curse the witch bloody.

"We wouldn't want the Aurors to accidentally find out about your little bug problem, now would we?" Harry growled, resisting the urge to pull out his wand and hex her despite his still depleted magical core and the risk of coma. The flinch that Rita gave in response had all three adults wondering what exactly Harry had on the woman.

"You'll have to speak to the press sometime, especially with your sudden disappearance from the ministry and the panic of your friends. I believe that the Auror search still hasn't been called off," Rita pointed out reasonably. "I'm perfectly willing to conduct the interview under magical oath of content fidelity. I'm even willing to sign a full contract to that effect if you make me your press contact."

"Then you're also willing to share with these three about your bug problem?" Harry asked with wary curiosity, gesturing at his unintentional escort. She hesitated before reluctantly nodding her agreement. He looked at the three men in question as they studied him.

"Its up to you but I want one of those magically binding oaths on top of the legal contract. Would you be willing to help us work out that contract Lucius?" Alan asked, accepting Harry's nod as a yes.

"Certainly but it might be prudent to find... ah," Lucius began just as they were approached by a goblin who motioned for them to follow.

Alan wasn't as surprised about their overall appearance as he thought he would be. He also remembered some of the stories about goblins and firmly kept himself between the goblin and Harry as the, now, group of five were led further into the bank. He would take no chances that his son would be stolen away or harmed by these strange beings. Sometimes, he really wished that he had never even heard of Jurassic Park or John Hammond. The nightmares still caused him problems from time to time and he was sure that some of the magical world was going to feature prominently in his next one. Alan just hoped he didn't wake Harry when it happened.

They were led down various halls into a sumptuous office very clearly for important clients. There were plenty of books on the shelves, various small magical items scattered around the room, and lots of obviously important papers practically burying the tall wooden desk. Alan started to take a seat but was stopped by a subtle shake of Lucius' head. They waited patiently for the goblin sitting behind the desk to acknowledge them. He finished scratching out whatever he was writing and set his quill down before addressing them.

"Mr. Potter, Gringotts would like to know why you have ignored all of our attempts to contact you," the goblin said politely, completely ignoring the adults for the moment.

"If you've sent me a letter I've never received it," Harry said with a frown. "I only ever get mail from my friends and Sirius, so almost nothing."

Everyone but Alan stared at him in shock. Dr. Grant had a sudden sense of foreboding about his son. He gently tugged a bewildered Harry into a backwards hug, putting his back to his father's chest.

"Someone must have a mail ward on him. There is absolutely no way he wouldn't be sent literally hundreds of letters and gifts," Lucius muttered darkly. "Many of them have legal connotations from large gifts to legal bequests. Completely aside from the various thank you notes that are likely still sent."

"Can we write up that contract now?" Rita asked quickly. "Parts of this meeting are clearly going to need to be published and I don't want someone else stealing my scoop!"

"I _definitely_ see why you don't like her," Alan said softly into Harry's ear making the teen snicker and nod in agreement.

Lucius nodded graciously and conjured a standard contract, incorporating the already discussed restrictions, including an accuracy and truthfulness clause. The penalties he listed made her pale but she didn't hesitate to sign it with the contract blood quill grudgingly provided by their goblin host. Severus and Alan also signed it, after honestly explaining the quill to the muggle man. Harry watched the quill almost nervously, rubbing at the scar on the back of his hand. The over use of the blood quill under Umbridge's care had made it intensely sensitive and affected how he viewed the magical item.

"I never thought I'd literally be signing something in blood," Alan said wryly as he watched the inevitable marks magically heal themselves perfectly. They were all finally asked to take a seat in the various chairs.

"Imagine having to write with one of those things for four hours nearly every night for a year," Harry pointed out with a grimace, still rubbing his hand.

"Ah, yes, I will have to get her brought up on charges," Lucius said darkly at the reminder. Severus growled in agreement as Rita scribbled down the disturbing tidbit. Alan mentally added one more person to his Rexy Snack list. He was still deciding if Rita should be on there for the obvious grief she'd given Harry.

"Could we get Dumbledore brought up on charges about the Basilisk, the Dementors, and whatever Fluffy was?" Alan asked curiously. They all just blinked at him in surprise before Harry burst out laughing. The joyful sound had everyone relaxing a bit despite the slightly hysterical edge.

"I already acted in regards to the Basilisk but it didn't last. The fact was that the Basilisk was a part of the castles defenses from when it was first built. The Dementors were the Ministry's fault and Dumbledore fought their placement at the school. Fluffy... who or what was Fluffy?" Lucius asked in puzzlement.

"Dumbledore used a Cerberus by the name of Fluffy, owned by Hagrid, as the first defense of Flamel's blasted stone in Harry and Draco's first year. The door wasn't even secured properly beyond a simple spell that nearly any student could get past. He also insisted on flat out announcing not to go to that area at the opening feast! I tried to get the stone moved elsewhere or at least the obstacles changed so that the students would be in less danger but I was overruled," Severus fumed. It was clearly a sore spot and all of them could see why. 

"Yeah, that was... weird. We did _try_ to get a teacher to deal with both Fluffy and someone trying to steal the stone. It didn't work very well so we dealt with it ourselves," Harry said with a careless shrug.

"I definitely agree with him staying in your quarters so you can keep a better eye on him during the school year," Alan said with a laughing groan. "He really shouldn't be so used to such dangers and adventures. Hell, adults should be terrified of facing some of what he's _lived_ through. Whoever his previous guardian was should be charged with neglect and child endangerment."

"Headmaster Dumbledore was Heir Potter's previous magical guardian, Petunia Dursley was his previous muggle guardian," the goblin offered the official confirmation toothily. He was clearly enjoying the discussion and just as clearly not a fan of Dumbledore. "As Heir Potter claims to have never received correspondence with the bank I am forced to ask if he ever authorized someone else to withdraw money from his account or shared his key with someone else. The Dursleys have been receiving a stipend to assist with raising Heir Potter. A stipend that they will be called to account for as, according to the thinness of Heir Potter's features and clearly stunted height, they appear not to have been using it for its intended purpose. It does not bode well for his previous accommodations if a full school year at Hogwarts has passed and he is still so thin."

Harry blushed deeply in embarrassment and refused to look at them.

"Brat, we need to know what they did to you at some point. For now answer his question and tell us if they fed you properly. I saw some of the damage on the healer's report. It was one of the reasons they accepted your father's adoption claim backed up by whatever you told them about the events on the island," Severus commanded softly, knowing first hand how hard it was to say _anything_ about such mistreatment.

"I never had my key and they never asked before getting my money for my school supplies. No, they didn't... fed me," Harry answered equally softly, eyes focused firmly on his lap.

"I know that was hard but I'm glad you told us," Alan said sincerely before pulling Harry into a hug. Harry buried himself in Alan's chest and just hid there as best he could. He shook from the force of mixed relief and grief as he accepted that his own blood would never treat him as human.

Rita much to their disgust was frantically writing notes about the issues Harry had pointed out, including his neglect. Severus was already glaring at her and plotting to take her aside to discuss whether or not she would be allowed to publish the information on his previous home life. Harry needed to be taken care of and healed, whereas the Dursleys needed to be punished.

"As we have covered some of the more immediate concerns may I ask why you came to Gringotts today?" the goblin asked politely, giving Harry a chance to compose himself.

"Ah, yes, Dr. Alan Grant and Potions Master Severus Snape wish to blood adopt Mr. Potter to keep the Ministry from forcibly removing him from their care. This will also prevent them from once more placing him with someone who would harm him," Lucius said promptly, his mind brought back to the original reason they were there.

"Once the blood adoption occurs would you be willing to go over certain... irregularities in the Potter account?" the goblin asked, growling a bit on the word "irregularities".

"Yes," Severus said harshly, switching from glaring at Rita to glaring at the goblin.

The goblin nodded his acceptance and quickly sent for a double dose of the needed potion. The adoption potion arrived promptly only to be poured into an over sized goblet. A silver knife was produced to help provide the blood.

"Will my status as a muggle affect the potion?" Alan asked worriedly, eyeing the knife and hoping he wouldn't be doing something dangerous or stupid with it. He gently moved Harry into his seat before moving to stand next to Severus as he examined the potion for quality.

"Since the brat is magical and we won't be the ones having our blood altered, no. If you were the one being adopted another potion or magic would need to be used because you don't have your own magic to support your end of the bond. Were you attempting this alone you would need to add double the blood to make it work and the side effects would be exaggerated. As it stands we each add three drops to the potion allow it to sit for a full minute and then the brat drinks it," Severus explained shortly, adding his own blood to the goblet quickly and efficiently before cleaning the blade and offering it to the paleontologist.

Alan nodded his acceptance and took the silver knife. He used it to very carefully slice into his palm before dripping three drops into the potion. Lucius kindly healed the cut as Severus cleaned the blade and swirled the potion. They waited the minute before Harry was offered the goblet. Making a face Harry downed it in one go and fought to keep it in his stomach even as he gagged. Severus rolled his eyes but also took the goblet to magically clean it as he watched Harry for any immediate changes. Harry finally got his stomach under control just before collapsing backwards into his seat with a moan.

"Is this supposed to happen?" Alan asked worriedly.

"The magic is fixing most if not all of the damage his relatives did to him all at once while incorporating our blood. We will be his parents once the process is done. I had honestly forgotten that it would more than burn a bit since he has more changes to make because of the damage. We can't even give him a pain reliever because it would interact badly with the adoption potion," Severus admitted with a grimace, picking Harry up and settling him in his lap. He held the younger wizard close to help minimize the thrashing and offer comfort.

Harry fought not to scream as he felt his bones re-break and re-align before fusing together in molten fire. The burning in his blood as the metamorphosis swept through his system, sinking into his muscles and bones, had him wanting to thrash. His hair got softer and more silky, loosing some of the wildness. The bright green of his eyes gained flecks of blue-grey. Harry gained nearly four inches in a matter of seconds before finally passing out in Severus' arms.

"We need a nutrition potion and a blood replenisher," Severus barked out, swearing under his breath as he kept Harry from falling while writhing and unconscious in his arms. He had the potions in his hands in less than five minutes. Spelling them directly into Harry's stomach they watched as the movements calmed and he gradually moved from unconsciousness to a more natural sleep.

"Severus, if it was this bad..." Lucius asked hesitantly.

"He will be on a potions regime for several months," Severus said grimly. "I thought he had the bodily resources to take the potion without a problem with how he plays Quidditch. He's going to hate me pulling him off the team until he's at least a little healthier. He's also far far to light. I should have realized what that meant."

"Hey, don't beat yourself up about it. Getting the information out of him even under that weird contract with the Raptors is like pulling teeth, or trying to shatter diamond," Alan scolded lightly, trying to distract himself from how much pain Harry was in. Severus nodded miserably but also allowed the forming adoption bond to urge him into cuddling Harry closer.

"This is unacceptable. Master Goblin, I would like to press charges against his previous magical guardians on the grounds of what we have seen today," Lucius said, fury clear in his eyes and tone.

"Would Mr. Potter's current guardians also like to press charges? Perhaps launch an official investigation into the Potter accounts?" the goblin suggested carefully. Alan picked up on the implications faster than Snape did.

"We would," Alan said savagely. "If possible we would like all misappropriated assets recovered."

"Excellent!" the goblin practically cackled. "You have no idea how long we've been waiting to do that. We despise thieves."

"I have to get to the prophet to get this published!" Rita said in excitement only to find herself stuck to the chair she was sitting in.

"You may cover the adoption and the fact that his previous caretakers didn't do their job. You may also cover the fact that we only went to the extreme of blood adoption because the Ministry would forcefully remove him from our care. That we were working under the belief he might be placed somewhere inappropriate or equally abusive. I can not stop you from publishing the fact that Salazar's pet Basilisk was roaming the school in his second year or the fact that Dumbledore housed a Cerberus inside the school during his first. You have permission to publish the fact that Harry is the one who killed the Basilisk without aid beyond a phoenix and a sword, which was likely taken from him afterwards. You do _not_ have permission to discuss his accounts, lordship, or emotional stability. Its a miracle he hasn't broken yet," Severus said in his most menacing voice. Rita actually squeaked as she cowered back in her chair nodding vigorously.

"You may not publish anything about the magical contract with the Raptors we mentioned. If you say anything about why I adopted him you will cite a life debt, which is true but isn't the whole of the matter," Alan said judiciously. "You also may not hint or in any way convey the possibility of an investigation and us pressing charges against anyone... yet. There's no reason to screw up the investigation before we've got proof to use against them in court."

"Of course, of course!" Rita agreed eagerly.

"If you don't behave I'll tell the Aurors about your beetle form," Harry rasped coming around enough to glare at the reporter.

"Beetle?" Lucius asked with raised eyebrows.

"She's an unregistered animagus," Harry said before collapsing into a strong fit of coughing.

"You're lungs must have been damaged at some point," Severus growled, scrabbling through his pocket for a cough potion he had on him because one of his Slytherins was down with a cold. Feeding Harry the cough syrup immediately helped and allowed him to settle back in his magical adoptive father's lap exhaustedly.

"Stupid chemicals in my cupboard," Harry murmured dazedly, making them all freeze in absolute shock.

"Chemicals? Who the hell keeps chemicals in the same room as a kid?! What did he mean about a cupboard?" Alan demanded with a growl of his own.

"Was my room," Harry muttered with a blush, still to out of it to know what he was saying. Rita looked at them expectantly, practically begging with her eyes to be allowed to publish this.

"No," Severus snapped at her, getting a puppy dog pout in return.

"It might help," Lucius pointed out softly.

"He didn't tell us on purpose and if we break his trust now he'll shut down. It will eventually kill him," Alan pointed out, reaching over to run his hands through Harry's hair.

"Do you have a cot and an unused room we can borrow for the night? I don't think it would be wise to move him far. The potion is still working," Severus asked the goblin softly. The goblin nodded and quickly made the arrangements before leading them to a room where they could stay for the night. Rita quickly escaped to write up and get her article published.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Still considering possible bonded familiars. Anything larger than a human will be equipped with some sort of shrinking ability or trinket to allow for movement inside buildings. Either that or simply sized differently than the standard/known size.
> 
> So far still on the list we have: Compys, Raptors (probably sized down to correct size rather than the movie version of Utharaptor), Basilisk, Dilophosaurus (aka the poisonous one that had that frill in the first Jurassic movie, possibly without frill), Indominus (sized down, also barely hanging in the running), T-Rex (barely hanging in the running), and finally a Dragon.
> 
> Most will start from baby/egg form but a few are being considered to bond as adults.


	7. Unexpected Meeting

Harry woke the next morning to an unending soreness throughout his entire body. He also knew immediately that he could not remember ever feeling better in his entire life. The lack of pain made him giddy and the two bonds he could feel humming in the back of his mind told him he was safe. They also told him that his parents, _parents!_ , were nearby and unharmed if a bit worried over him. Harry could tell that this was part of the adoption magic to make up for the time when he wasn't their son. He _adored_ the reminder that he was wanted and could feel no duplicity from either of his new fathers. He could, however, feel his scar burning lightly, as if Voldemort were nearby. The light tugging on his scar felt weird but he wasn't in enough pain from his scar to even think the man was within fifty miles.

The opening of the door to their temporary room was quiet enough that only Harry and Severus woke. The hissy chuckle of Nagini on the floor had them both immediately wide awake and moving. Harry had barely moved to roll off the cot before Nagini slammed into him, wrapping him tightly in her coils. Severus on the other hand was distracted by Nagini's actions long enough that Voldemort got a grip on his throat. The potions master didn't fight the grip after realizing who had him at their mercy, hanging almost limply in the Dark Lord's grasp. The quiet scuffle woke Lucius and Alan, only for Lucius to hold Alan back from interfering, hissing at him to wait.

"Sir, those are paying customers! If you do not leave them alone I will have to call the guards," the very young goblin protested furiously from the doorway.

"Two bear my mark, the boy I am in the processes of scheduling a meeting with and the muggle needs to understand how precarious a situation he is in. I am not breaching the banks rules to have a discussion with someone who has sworn me a loyalty oath when we cross paths on the banks premises. Feel free to remain to ensure the safety of the muggle and the boy. I long ago filed the appropriate paperwork regarding those who bear my mark," Voldemort shot back, features completely covered by his hood and oversized black robe. "As for Nagini, she simply kept me from being cursed and will not harm him unless I order it. I want to know why the bond between Severus and I has altered and why my magic brought me towards the boy."

"My lord, I... urk!" Severus started to explain only for Voldemort's grip to tighten, cutting him off.

"Be silent, Severus. You will have your chance to explain after I have examined the mark," Voldemort hissed furiously. He quickly used his wand to rip open Severus' left sleeve and poke at the mark, examining it. "Its almost as if you've made an oath that parallels the first oath you gave to me. The only way that should be possible is if... What were the exact words of whatever oath you took?"

"Will you swear on your magic not to hurt him or our son if I answer that?" Alan demanded, thinking quickly about what they would need to stay alive.

"Your son?" Voldemort asked carefully, easing his grip on Severus' throat.

"Blood adoption, last night," Severus rasped out as the young goblin finally decided he needed someone higher up the chain to sort this out and went for help.

"~Nagini, release him slowly. We don't want him to do anything rash.~" Voldemort ordered his familiar as he released Severus equally slowly.

"~Bastard, you could have let me finish sleeping. Stupid potion.~" Harry muttered in Parseltongue. Voldemort's head whipped around to stare at his young nemesis in astonishment.

"Apparently, we have more to discuss than I thought. Are you adverse to having the requested meeting now?" Voldemort offered politely, taking a step back from Severus and sheathing his wand. Just then a contingent of goblin guards and a manager found them.

"Just a slight misunderstanding, master goblin. We had not expected to come upon one another so soon or on the bank grounds," Lucius said swiftly, stepping around Alan to deal with the group of goblins.

The goblin manager looked at them all suspiciously but when no one said anything to contradict the Malfoy Lord he accepted it and sent the guards back off. The manager, once the situation had been explained in more detail, collected them and led them to a meeting room before arranging for refreshments and leaving them to their early meeting. They sat in silence munching on food for their unusual breakfast before Voldemort eventually settled with his tea and raised an inquisitive eyebrow at them from under his hood, waiting.

"Can you take off your hood? I feel like I'm sitting down to breakfast with Emperor Palpatine," Alan asked grumpily. Voldemort gave a little chuckle and complied only for Harry, Lucius, and Severus to stare at him in astonishment.

"Where'd the snake-face go? You look like you're diary self. Well, except for the red eyes," Harry asked in bewilderment. Voldemort's gaze sharpened on him even as Lucius mentally cringed at the reference to the lost diary.

"So, it is a possibility then," Voldemort murmured before switching to Parseltongue. "~How do you know the snake language?~"

"I dunno. First time I spoke to a snake was when I accidentally set a boa on my cousin. Got in trouble for that," Harry answered with a shrug.

"Ah, yes, your _relatives_ ," he spat the word like it was something foul. "I have them you know, do you want them back?"

"Not really but you might let Dudley go. Its not like he knew any better and they were hurting him just as much by giving him everything," Harry pointed out, looking into his tea cup so he didn't have to look at the face he'd had to kill in second year.

"Please tell me that we are going to get back at that woman? I realize that getting her to tell our side truthfully was a godsend but the way she treated Harry in the lobby..." Alan asked, trailing off with a scowl.

"Of course we are," Lucius answered in obvious surprise. "Being an unregistered animagus gets you five years in Azkaban automatically. You have six months to gain proper control of your form and register. Not to mention how many enemies she's made over the years. No, she's only earned a reprieve and by the time Severus and I are done with her she may actually wish we'd turned her in instead."

"Good, I was tempted to challenge her to one of those honor duels we discussed. Of course I was more angry at the idiot who gave her cart blanche to slander Harry in the media but..." Alan said with an evil shrug of mock indifference. "I can always find a way to kidnap her and feed her to Rexy or the Raptors."

"I really do need to know what oath you swore, Severus, and to whom. There is a part of the marking ceremony that I specifically designed so that none of you remember it. The side effects of a parallel oath could be good or bad but I need to know the wording to determine which," Voldemort explained. Nagini hissed contentedly in his lap, enjoying the petting her human was providing.

"You won't curse him for it?" Harry asked warily.

"Unless he swore to kill me or betray us all to Dumbledore and the Ministry, no. He's served me well and I know he doesn't feel appreciated or respected among my ranks any more. I had hoped that he would find someone and settle down but it hasn't happened. As a spy in both camps he must spy on both sides for the other. I know this, Dumbledore knows this, and Severus knows this. His true allegiance _must_ remain suspect or the entire thing comes crashing down. As a person he's very honorable and trustworthy. He also protects anyone and anything that is either his or in his care," Voldemort explained with a wry chuckle. "I know that now he's adopted you if I feel I must kill you I will also have to kill him. It simply comes with the territory whenever Severus is involved."

"You looked in the minds of my relatives... how far did you look?" Harry asked tentatively.

"More than far enough. If loosing Severus to you will get you out of that hell hole I'll remove the mark now," Voldemort said promptly.

Harry nodded his own understanding. An inquisitive look from him had Alan helpfully recited the oath from memory. " _I, Severus Tobias Snape, swear on my life and magic that Harry James Potter is my liege lord and true master despite my position as spy in the ranks of Dumbledore's Order and the Dark Lord's Death Eaters. So Mote It Be._ "

"That should have come into direct conflict with his original oath to me," Voldemort said with a thoughtful frown. "In fact it should have killed him outright, unless... Was your scar ever examined?"

"It must have been but I don't know anything about it beyond what everyone knows and the fact it burns when you're angry or nearby," Harry admitted, completely puzzled by the idea that there might be more. Nagini took it upon herself to quickly slither across the table and rise up in front of Harry, licking the scents in the air around his head.

"~The hatchling tastes like you, Tom. Like the way all your treasures taste.~" Nagini hissed with a snicker before turning her back on the startled group and returning to her wizard. "~Is he one of your treasures? Why did you hurt him before?~"

"~I.. didn't know. I didn't know he was one of my treasures, like you are one of my treasures.~" Voldemort hissed, completely floored by the news.

"~Silly Tom. Apologize to the treasure hatchling and make one of your minions protect him.~" Nagini ordered before settling back into his lap to accept more petting.

"So, does that mean you still want to kill me?" Harry asked cautiously. He wondered about the title treasure hatchling and was more than a little amused to find that Nagini thought the Death Munchers were minions.

"Absolutely not! No, with this new information you can't be allowed to fall into the hands of Dumbledore or the Ministry. Its too much of a risk. It also explains why the oath reinforced Severus' original oath rather than killing him in the conflict of magic," Voldemort said decisively, with a vehement shake of his head.

"Why did you keep trying to kill me any way?" Harry asked, hiding his relief behind his irritation. "And why does it reinforce the oath to you?"

"There was a prophecy about a child born at the end of July that would defeat, and probably kill me. I wasn't exactly in my right mind at the time or I would have dismissed it as so much offal. I don't believe in divination yet I went after you based on an incomplete prophecy. _Not_ one of my finer moments," Voldemort admitted unhappily. "As for his oaths reinforcing each other, that actually ties to why I was so insane. I had performed several enhancement rituals and foolishly ignored or was unaware of the side effects. One of them... split my soul to help anchor me to the earth, preventing my true death. Incidentally the objects that hold the soul shards are called Horcruxes and most would consider them Black magic, not just Dark. Since I was sixteen the first time I performed that ritual and an arrogant sod to boot... well lets just say I probably wasn't thinking clearly at the time. Admittedly, that was during the London blitz and Dumbledore repeatedly forced me out of the wizarding world and back into that war zone each summer."

"What does that have to do with his oaths?" Harry asked suspiciously. He completely understood the man's hatred for Dumbledore if he had to face a war zone every summer without magic.

"I'm getting to that. The night your parents died... I was performing the same ritual again. Unfortunately or perhaps fortunately my attempt at killing you backfired. This interrupted part of the ritual in-progress and my soul was already highly unstable. When my original body was destroyed a piece of myself apparently broke off and latched onto you, settling into your scar. If they truly want to kill me they have to find all of my Horcruxes and destroy them... including you," Voldemort explained reluctantly. "You hold a piece of me so swearing allegiance to you can be considered swearing allegiance to me in a way. Thus Severus' two oaths reinforce one another. Something happened around June 1993, the end of your second year, that returned a large portion of my soul and with it my sanity."

"I killed your diary because it was trying to kill me and Ginny," Harry supplied with a nod of understanding. Then his eyes widened as he finally took in the implications of the Horcruxes and why he might be one. Swearing viciously he was brought back to reality when Severus hit him with a soap charm in the mouth. "Blech!"

"Don't swear and I won't need to wash your mouth out again," Severus said unmoved yet still pale. "Besides this calls for alcohol not swearing and you're still too young for more than a mouthful of anything but butter beer."

"A mouthful of some of the stronger stuff is still to much but I agree with the sentiment," Alan said with a snort of wry amusement. He was forcing himself not to collapse or otherwise pass out. This was just too much and yet it involved his son. Dear god what had he gotten himself into? Oh, that's right, he'd adopted a magical prince with an evil regent aka Dumbledore. Damn, he needed that drink.

"Horcruxes my lord?" Lucius asked in a strangled voice. Voldemort shrugged, not at all apologetic. He'd had his reasons, stupid as they may have been.

"~Blond peacock is scared of treasures!~" Nagini cackled. Harry snorted at the assessment but didn't argue.

"I can't get at most of the others to attempt to reabsorb them. The reversal ritual is actually more dangerous than the one to split your soul. Thankfully, I received some of the memories the Diary held when it merged with the primary soul piece. It also repaired my sanity for the most part," Voldemort commented dryly. "In some other world I might not have received the portion of my soul the diary held and we would have continued until someone managed to stop me. Thankfully that isn't the case in our timeline. Have Severus or Lucius taken the chance to explain our true goals?"

"Yes, and that's one of the reasons I wanted to talk to you. Dumbledore keeps telling everyone that you want to emulate Hitler and kill off anyone with who isn't a pureblood witch or wizard," Harry explained, completely ignoring his parents and Lucius in favor of getting the situation sorted. "Its not practical to do that, there's too much inbreeding and we'd be discovered at the drop of the hat because they won't pay attention to the changes in the muggle world."

"No, I was raised in a muggle orphanage and mistreated. They were not equipped to handle the challenges of raising a magical child. They thought I was a literal demon and forced me to under go repeated exorcisms. Most of which went badly because my magic naturally tried to protect me. I also agree that most pureblood simply refuse to pay attention and don't seem to have any common sense. I'd have to find a way to check for the inbreeding aside from marriage records since magic compensates for so much," Voldemort told them, figuring that since he was sharing so many secrets he'd bind the adults to secrecy afterwards. Harry had been through something similar so he wasn't worried about his human horcrux saying anything.

"Like what the Dursleys tried to do to me," Harry said, nodding grimly. Alan and Snape couldn't fight the urge to hug him any more and both reached for him at the same time. Voldemort smile softly seeing this and nodded his approval.

"I can not apologize for the death of your parents. We were at war, on opposite sides. I can, however, regret the pain you suffered for their loss and my own attacks upon you. If you can think of some sort of compensation for those attacks I will see what I can do to re-pay you for my gross error in judgement," Voldemort offered. The evil look that Harry gained immediately set him on his guard but he did not retract the heartfelt offer.

"I want you to visit a few new friends I made on that dinosaur island, explain to them what happened. I also want you to walk down Diagon Alley at lunch time dressed in a pink tutu with bright red clown shoes singing Marry Had a Little Lamb. Actually, you can switch back and forth between the Song That Never Ends and Marry Had a Little Lamb. Then I want you to do a proper interview with the Daily Prophet, explaining your side. You're letting Dumbledore and the Ministry destroy you through propaganda. That stops if you actually want to achieve anything and protect kids like us," Harry told him firmly. "The prank is for me, the interview is for everyone who's been mistreated by family or someone who's supposed to care."

"I can agree to that," Voldemort said, smiling widely in a combination of Slytherin cunning and relief. Yes, it would be humiliating but it was also a decent price to end the unintentional blood feud and it clearly reflected both their backgrounds. "I'm a little surprised you didn't ask for protection for your friends."

Harry closed down immediately and explained in a monotone how he'd discovered that most of them were spying on him and being paid to be his friend. He brightened a bit when describing how Luna and the Twins were probably still his friends but he hadn't had the chance to check yet. No one mentioned the deal with the raptors, nor Rita's exclusive interview that would probably be in the paper either that night or the next morning. By the time Harry was done explaining Nagini was half wrapped around him cooing in sympathy and threatening to eat the "nasty hatchlings".

"All of this changes things," Voldemort said with a deep sigh. "I won't argue with your claim on Severus but I also won't remove his mark so that you both have a way to contact me and I you in an emergency. Severus you might point out that an optional summer session might not go amiss. Remind the old fool that since I used his blood in the resurrection ritual the blood wards are useless. I will deal with the Dursleys but there is no reason to risk him being sent back to fight the memories either. Is there anyone in particular I should deliver your cousin to? Or just drop him off at a muggle police station?"

" _Aunt_ Marge Dursley," Harry said promptly. "If you could terrorize her and her favorite dog ripper while you're at it that would be great. It isn't fun getting bit and chased up a tree before spending the night in the tree because she won't call off her damn dog."

"Kid, you've had a rough life," Alan said with a snort, happy that he didn't ask the other man to kill them but instead just scare them. Voldemort agreed and the meeting broke up for lunch.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Whoa, there are a lot of votes for the Basilisk, the Compys, the Dilophosaurus, a Dragon variation (Norberta falls under this), or some Hybrid. Indominus is only still in the running because it could have easily come out the size of an Utharapotor instead of a Rex and falls under Hybrid. Its pretty much unanimous (between readers and author) that the familiar will bond with Harry as either a hatchling or a juvenile aka not an adult.
> 
> You guys are absolutely amazing and I am so very glad I could bring you a story that you not only enjoy but actively engage with.
> 
> Keep the ideas coming!


	8. Working Lunch

They agreed to have lunch in Diagon together since the meeting had clearly showed that Harry was basically recovered from the adoption potion. The adoption had done nothing about his scar but had tamed his hair a bit and given him a little more height. Harry grumbled about needing new robes and Severus retorted that he needed an entire new wardrobe. They could all see him practically glow under the poorly masked concern of the potions master. That was when he was informed that he would be pulled from the Quidditch team because of the damage the Dursleys had done.

Voldemort tossed up a privacy charm just in time and watched as Harry's new fathers comforted him and explained, in detail, why it was currently to dangerous for him to play. Severus made good use of citing his trips to the hospital wing, much to the horror of Alan and Lucius. Harry bargained hard, not really expecting to get anything except slapped down. As a result he was visibly shocked when they agreed to let him fly each weekend with supervision provided he could prove all of his homework was done. Lucius and Voldemort just enjoyed the by play between new parents and teenage son.

"What are your plans for the summer? Provided Dumbledore does not force the three of you to reside at the castle?" Voldemort asked easily, a light glamour having changed his red eyes into a light grey. He was fully confidant that only a few would ever recognize him and of them only Dumbledore would try to make a fuss.

"I don't know, possible investigate some of the digs around the UK and show Harry what I do for a living," Alan said with a grin that bordered on giddy.

"Really? I love dinosaurs. I just never got to learn about them," Harry said excitedly.

"We'll have to get you a proper outfit or two for the dig site and some tools but yeah. I figure it will be fun and you'll learn something. I might even be able to sneak some basic lessons into the mix so it won't all be book work to get caught up with your non-magical peers," Alan teased. "Perhaps he'll find something down near Devon at Pinhay Bay, it covers enough time periods."

All of the adults were deeply amused at Harry's puppy like excitement as they sat down to lunch and ordered. They were half way through eating when Lucius gave a low groan, having caught sight of the Minister.

"What?" Harry asked, voice low and ostensibly absorbed in devour what was on his plate.

"Fudge," Lucius hissed back and stood up to greet the minister with a smile. "Minister! How wonderful it is to see you today."

"Lucius, I see you made sure our Mr. Potter made it safely back to our shores," Fudge said jovially. "Has he stopped lying about You-Know-Who's return?"

"Minister if you refuse to believe the testimony presented to you at the time then why did you bother dragging the poor boy's name through the mud for the last year? He's done nothing wrong except survive where his classmate didn't. He has enough problems without you driving him to suicide. That wouldn't look very good to the public now would it? I can just see the headlines now, Ministry Harassment Drives 15 year old Savior to Suicide," Voldemort snarked, causing the man to pale.

"I may not know who you are sir, but..." Fudge started to bluster even as Voldemort cut him off with an upraised hand.

"I am Tom Riddle, last of the Gaunt line and Heir to Salazar Slytherin. I have not come forwards to confirm the boy's story since you were presented ample evidence and I was rather busy keeping the Death Eaters from killing me. You see whatever declared Mr. Potter to be the defeater of Voldemort was quite true. His blood was forcibly taken to be used in the resurrection ritual, which _worked_ and the insanity that was Voldemort died partly because of it. You should be praising him, he kept your miserable hides from being hunted and killed like animals. You should be investigating Dumbledore for corrupting young minds and brainwashing some of the best to be his lackeys. He tried it with me and has been practically holding Severus here hostage since his trial. Why are you wasting your time slandering a child?" Voldemort asked with smooth elegance.

Harry practically gaped at him while the adults had their own trouble hiding their surprise. The thing was, everything he'd said was true but he also never claimed that the _man_ who was Voldemort was dead, merely the insanity. Voldemort's words echoed clearly throughout all of Diagon and sparked a low mutter of voices and discontent which quickly turned angry. Just then they saw the special edition of the Prophet going out, showing the irony of perfect timing, as the article on Harry's unusual situation was delivered unto the public for reading. Fudge knew when to skidattle even without knowing why. He quickly made his way back towards the safety of his office, Auror guard following behind him.

"Why?" Harry stammered out, eyes wide in a combination of shock and astonishment.

"It was the truth and his attacks on you were even less honorable than my own attempts. At least I had the excuse that I was insane at the time," Voldemort answered with a light shrug before taking another sip of his drink. "It was also part of my reparations. This is simply part of the harm that has to be healed. Lucius, make sure everyone knows that Severus has custody of Potter with my blessing and that none of them are to be touched. I will happily perform your prank when things are more settled and the old man isn't threatening everything we care about. If I can trick him into focusing elsewhere long enough that I don't have to duel him in such a ridiculous outfit I'll make the attempt then. Is that acceptable?"

"I want to be there or at least be able to watch it somehow," Harry said firmly, his inner prankster clearly showing through despite his early maturity.

"Agreed. If I cannot arrange for your presence then I will arrange for you to have a copy of the memory," Voldemort said softly, gathering up Nagini he took his leave of the small group.

"That was... disconcerting," Alan said carefully.

"Try bloody terrifying," Severus shot back with a snort, fully relieved not to be crucioed or branded a traitor.

"Be grateful he's sane again," Lucius said softly.

"Oh, I am, I am. That doesn't change the fact that we know what he's capable of. Nor does it change how often we've been on the wrong end of his wand," Severus said testily.

"He was bad enough as an enemy, lets see how things work out as... not enemies," Harry pointed out quietly. Still a little in shock at what happened during lunch.

"I know we bought you a few things while you were on bed rest but do you need anything now? Before we find a way to get your stuff from school?" Alan asked, careful of what he thought was a delicate teenage ego.

"Clothing and some supplementary potions books," Severus said thoughtfully, trying to remember what all Harry had and obviously needed. "I'll need more ingredients to make the potions he needs. If I use one of my enhanced formulas he may only need to take them twice a day over the summer and possibly two weeks into the term. That, along with a medical examine, might let him play Quidditch again, presuming he does better in his studies."

"Do you think we could get a pair of boxes that will let us send things directly to them from the other box? I could look over his muggle homework when he finishes it and help with that. Or we can use it to exchange letters and if one of us forgets something," Alan suggested thoughtfully. "Having a school bag that's got some sort of lightening spell and expansion spell on it should help him to. His clothes and things should have spells that keep them from ripping or getting too battered if he winds up in yet another adventure. What are the school rules on pocket knives any way?"

"His best resource at the moment is the school staff. As for pocket knives there isn't technically a rule against them as tools but there are a few about weapons in general. We would be better off teaching him how to perfectly transfigure and/or conjure a knife. Once he's mastered the spell with a wand we can move to silent casting and then to wandless, and finally to wandless and silent. If we arrange for him to learn how to throw them accurately that will give him one more defense if things go wrong, again," Severus explained, elaborating along the train of thought that Alan was obviously following.

"Then we work on his muggle school work and having him summon things, banish or vanish things, conjuration, and transfiguration of objects," Alan said with a nod of agreement. "It will give him the largest set of multi-use tools in an emergency. Maybe throw in some minor healing and basic first aid."

"As fascinating as this is I must take my leave. Alan, I'll sort out your registration paperwork when I'm at the ministry later. Severus, please contact me if you feel you need help with his Lordship training," Lucius said paying the bill as he took his leave.

They waved good bye at him while continuing to avidly discuss what skills would work best in an unexpected situation. Harry watched the back and forth of the conversation, occasionally slipping an objection or comment in while enjoying the obvious care from his fathers. Severus briefly left them browsing Flourish and Blotts to retrieve Harry's things and tell the Headmaster that he had been taken to the Dursleys. He had also taken the chance to plant the suggestion about a summer session. They figured it wasn't their fault if the old man didn't bother checking on Harry now that he was free of his relatives.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Final round of suggestions on familiars/hybrids!  
> Requests for pairing suggestions and/or lack thereof!


	9. Heart's Work, Heart's Wounds

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> First pairing decided, Alan/Sev. I'm holding off on Harry (if any) for the moment. The familiar/familiar's egg should show up next chapter or the chapter after. Enjoy!  
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Alan found the continual apologies from various shoppers to be mostly amusing except for the few times some of them got grabby or started fawning over Harry. Severus and the shop employees helped keep most of the shoppers in line. After one particularly forceful attempt to smother Harry in a hug they were given a very generous discount for the day. The goblins had been kind enough to contact Alan's bank and, withdrawing a sum, converted half each to wizard and British currency. He was more than a bit embarrassed that Harry had to teach him the differences so that he could shop properly. All in all they made it out of the shopping trip without too much hassle, despite thoroughly amusing their Slytherin escort.

It didn't take Harry much effort to talk Severus into helping them find a muggle-magic hotel or arrange to go to the dig site that Alan had picked out for them. What did take some effort was deciding if they were going as a small family or not. Once Alan promised that they could buy a potion lab equipped magical tent, after he'd been informed of the existence of such a thing, they all decided to spend the summer together.

Harry had settled into his bed and was out like a light within moments, leaving his parents in a slightly awkward position. Severus had insisted on them sharing a room in case some idiot took it into their head to attack them. The problem? There were only two beds to a room and neither of them were going to ask Harry to sleep on the floor or a cot. They might not know as much as they would like about how he was mistreated but they would be damned before willingly subjecting him to something that might bring up unpleasant memories.

"Er, do you want the bed? I can sleep on the floor," Alan offered sheepishly once he'd realized their dilemma.

"I would prefer the bed, yes... However, I see no reason to force you to sleep on the floor," Severus said cautiously. At Alan's blank look he elaborated. "The bed is big enough for two, unless you object to my person?"

"Oh! No, no, I don't object. I just figured you'd object," Alan said, blushing in embarrassment.

A blush that immediately caught Severus' attention. He studied the paleontologist carefully for a moment before nodding to himself. The man was intelligent, seemed to be taking the news of magic well, clearly devoted to the offspring they had adopted. This boded well for a further relationship and any future offspring if he decided to offer to carry a child and give Harry a sibling. Alan, as a muggle, obviously couldn't carry a child to term... what was he thinking?! He didn't even know if the man would even welcome his advances! Well, best to test the waters now and avoid heartbreak later.

"Are you in any way attracted to men?" Severus asked bluntly. Alan fumbled over his own feet spluttering and blushing but not saying no. Interesting, a possibility then.

"If that idea bothers you... well, I've only ever gone out with women," Alan stuttered, earning a piercing look for his troubles.

"Why should it bother me? Personal preference is just that in the Wizarding World, after all a wizard can carry a child just as well as a witch and there are gender switching potions. Reproduction is the basis for that bias in muggle society after all," Severus said casually. Taking one last inscrutable look at the other man he quickly slipped into the bathroom to get ready for bed and wondered how Alan would take this latest blow to his preconceptions.

Dumbstruck, Alan sat down on the lone chair with an audible thump. Wizards, _men_ could give _birth?_ How would that even work? Harry! Oh... When Ian found out about this he was going to laugh himself sick. Then he was probably going to get sloshed. Yes, he'd been attracted to Ellie but she had moved on when he refused to consider kids. With Snape though... the idea didn't feel so strange or frightening, possibly because they technically already had a kid in Harry. Well, if the other man wanted to try for something he'd give it a go but children wasn't on the menu until they'd made sure Harry was safe and happy. Oh god, the raptors had been right! Apparently he was a decent dad and he refused to do less than his best.

Severus came back out in his dark green night shirt and looked him in the eye. Finding what he was after the potions master gave a satisfied nod and climbed into bed, pointedly waiting. Alan didn't dawdle with his own night time rituals, slipping on his plaid pajamas, before joining the onyx eyed man.

"Goodnight Alan," Severus said quietly before turning off the lamp.

"Goodnight Severus," Alan whispered back. It wasn't hard for either of them to fall asleep.

They both woke before dawn and well before Harry. Quietly they got ready for the day, including a hot shower a piece, while their son slept peacefully. They woke him around seven and worked flawlessly together to get him up and moving. Harry yawned before beaming gratefully at them and cheerfully collecting what he needed to get ready before claiming the bathroom.

"If I understood you right last night... I'm not adverse to trying something but Harry needs to come first," Alan said firmly over a cup of hotel room coffee while Harry hummed away happily in the shower.

"Agreed. The brat needs boundaries and we need to get him to talk about what happened even if only so we know what we're dealing with," Severus said with a nod, taking a sip of his own coffee.

"So we'll be his parents first and possibly more to each other second," Alan summarized with relief. Severus hummed his agreement before making himself another coffee.

The small family spent the day confirming arrangements to spend the summer near the dig site by Devon and sorting out any other business for the summer. Harry helped pick them pick out the correct magical tent, looking entirely muggle but with everything they needed for the summer. This included Severus' potions lab built right into the tent.

At one point Harry saw them unconsciously working together flawlessly and occasionally tossing interested glances at each other. After seeing that he decided to do a little matchmaking and made sure there were optional silencing charms on each of the bedroom sections in the tent. He felt no need to be fully aware of any "bedroom activities" and couldn't stand the thought of even facing them the morning afterwards. Harry conveniently forgot about his assigned essays until Severus figured out what he was doing and sat him down at the desk in their hotel room with parchment, quill, and ink.

"You've yet to do those essays I assigned you and you're clearly pushing to hard. I have no doubt that you'll be exhausted by supper time if you keep this up," Severus said sternly, pointing at the writing material in the clear order to get to work. They both knew that the essays would be more mentally and emotionally taxing than physically.

"Can we have chocolate ice cream for afters?" Harry asked carefully.

"If you've managed to write up the essay on your life before Hogwarts and your first two years at Hogwarts," Severus said sternly. His eyes and voice softened when he realized that his son, no longer the son of his nemesis, was scared. "Harry, this needs doing if only so that we can help you. We've both agreed that raising you comes first from now on. Do which ever one frightens you the most first. We'll both sit on the beds reading while you work. We're here if you need us even if its just for a hug or something silly like a spelling correction or prank. Try not to leave anything out, only the two of us will ever read them unless your life is in danger, alright?"

"Alright," Harry muttered, subdued and watching out of the corner of his eye as his parents did exactly what he had been told they would. They set themselves up on the two beds to read the new books they had bought in Diagon.

Screwing up his Gryffindor courage Harry started on the one about his time with the Dursleys. It took him nearly four exhaustive hours to force himself to write down most of what he remembered. He was silently crying by the time Severus walked over and gently pulled the barely working, mostly mangled quill from Harry's hands. Not one word was said as he lunged into their arms and sobbed his heart out.

"Its alright, brat. We're here for you," Severus whispered to him as they did their best to comfort him.

They did indeed have chocolate ice cream along with treacle tart, butter beer, and spaghetti for supper that night. Further attempts on the demon essay were limited to twenty minutes of writing at a time, with thirty minute breaks. Neither of them left his side until he was done, offering silent comfort the whole time. Not a single one of them were surprised when he woke screaming from a nightmare that night.


	10. Summer Times

Late that night, after waking from two separate nightmares, Harry once more dreamed of Voldemort only this time both of them were aware of what was happening. Voldemort sent him a mental smirk at his presence before once more paying attention to his minions. It wasn't long before there was a commotion at the back of the room and an unruly prisoner was dragged forwards. Harry gasped at the sight of Sirius struggling and cursing in the grip of his insane cousin.

"What have you brought me, Bella?" Voldemort asked, intrigued in spite of himself.

"My blood traitor of a cousin, my lord," Bellatrix cackled, throwing the grim animagus at Voldemort's feet.

Voldemort could feel Harry's worry and panic in the back of his mind an knew he had to step carefully. Mentally he directed soothing feelings towards his young horcrux and decided to do something many of his people would object to, even if they saw the logic in it. At least he had a back up plan if the former Auror decided to be stubborn about everything.

"You have a choice Black, a choice that will deeply affect your godson," Voldemort said softly, immediately gaining Sirius' full attention. "You can take my mark and revenge against the muggles who have abused and tortured your godson. With this comes respect and the assurance of visiting your godson from time to time. I will also offer you and your werewolf refuge, no questions asked. Or you can simply sit in a sealed wing of the manor, seeing no one, food delivered by house elves ordered not to help you escape, and being used to ensure your godson's... cooperation. At the moment he is safe and I have no wish to force his cooperation on anything but I will not let this opportunity pass unclaimed."

"Who harmed my godson?!" Sirius barked out only to be hit from behind by his cousin and knocked to the floor.

"Bella, we do not strike a potential ally while discussing a situation," Voldemort said sternly, with a deep sigh of resignation following her look of shock. A warm wave of reassurance aimed at Harry kept him from feeling betrayed at the offer. It did nothing for the disappointment and drop in respect for Sirius.

"Ally?" Black asked suspiciously.

"New information has come to light that makes keeping your godson alive and relatively happy one of my best options. I'm not stupid and your godson fixed my insanity. I can work with him while you remain an enemy but your minimal cooperation will make things easier on everyone. It also might keep him alive when certain people find out I don't plan to kill him any more," Voldemort said with a careless shrug that Harry could tell was faked. Something about the scene struck him as off, making Harry pay more attention to what his senses were telling him. The bright, joyful laughter that burst from him when he realized that Voldemort was only trying this to please and was pranking Sirius him broke the connection and spooked his fathers into wakefulness.

"What's so funny?" Severus asked sourly, automatically noting the exits to the room and the lack of evidence of an intruder.

"Bellatrix handed Sirius to Voldemort and now he's trying to talk Sirius into joining so he doesn't upset me," Harry informed them with a snicker.

"Go back to bed, brat, and don't expect the mutt to do the sensible thing," Severus told him in a gentle growl.

"I know," Harry said sadly. Turning over and snickering at the strange scene he had just witnessed before quickly falling asleep. Voldemort's attempts at soothing helped in so much as it chased away any remaining nightmares of the Dursleys until dawn.

Almost as soon as he woke the following morning Harry was engulfed in a comforting hug by his surly father. Severus had lain awake the rest of the night in worry and decided, whatever the outcome with the mutt, Harry was going to need comfort in the morning. He knew what having to deal with a bad home life was like, intimately. He didn't want his son to suffer from the same insecurities and mental pain that had turned him into a right bastard. Both he and Alan knew that no matter how flexible children were properly healing their son was going to take _years_.

Harry didn't care about the Potion Master's reasons for the hug he simply reveled in it. The quiet chuckle of amusement from his other father just made the hug all the more precious. None of them cared to comment when Harry took the hug one step further and practically buried himself in Severus' chest. They sat there together for over an hour just being together and offering comfort to Harry's battered soul. Harry was the one to finally break the hug when his stomach complained, loudly, that it needed food.

"Come, imp, let's get something into that growling monster," Severus teased softly, giving Harry one last squeeze before standing up. They quickly took turns getting ready before quickly packing and venturing into the hotel dinning area in search of breakfast.

"Will the other essays be easier?" Alan asked softly as they headed for the wizarding arrival/departure area. Harry nodded but didn't look at either of his parents.

Severus mentally sighed, recognizing that his taunting over the years was partly to blame for the pain his son was currently in. He quickly started plotting a way to try and heal the damage that had only exacerbated what the Dursleys had done. It didn't matter that it had been to keep his cover and try to keep him from being overly reckless by puncturing what Severus had believed was an over inflated ego. No, what mattered was that his son was hurting and he needed to fix it.

Pulling out the portkey down to the dig site they gathered around it, making sure to all be touching it. A quiet command of "T-Rex" sent them on their way. They set up the tent together in silence on the cliff near the dig. When Alan went to mingle with his colleagues and sorted out any outstanding fees for being considered part of the dig for the summer it gave them a chance to talk.

"Harry, we will do everything in our power to help you. We know the adoption was a bit late in your life but that doesn't change that we are your parents. We aren't trying to replace James or Lily, heaven help us if we were, but the blood adoption made you our son, forever. We, I, need to know you understand that. That you understand we will be the best parents as we can manage just like the Weasleys treat their own brood," Severus stumbled over his explanation, desperate to convey that their support wasn't going to up and disappear one day.

"She said I was as good as one of her sons... She ignored me and didn't take Ron or the twins seriously when they told her about how I was being treated," Harry said sadly. Hearing this caused Severus' heart to constrict. He mentally cursed both Molly Weasley and the Dursleys to hell and back, throwing in the wizarding public and Dumbledore for good measure.

"Well, now you have your own parents, even if one of them is your greasy git of a potions teacher," Severus said softly, giving him another hug just as Alan walked up.

"Something wrong?" Alan asked, observing them and wondering if he could help.

"Just another adult failing him while looking like they actually cared," Severus said with a deep sigh. Harry buried his face in his father's black shirt and tried not to cry. Alan nodded sympathetically and shared a look with Severus that clearly said he wasn't adverse to getting revenge for his son.

Two days later Harry was happily digging in the dirt trying to carefully pull out a plant fossil he had discovered. Severus had started him off on nutritional potions the moment he'd had them brewed and his son was now taking them three times a day at each meal. Harry had been disappointed that they weren't using the more powerful versions his father had mentioned but he also wasn't going to argue about it. The fact was that for the first time in his memory he was feeling stronger, less shaky, his mind was more clear, and he didn't positively _ache_ in muscle or bone. If he had to take it slow to avoid overwhelming his body to keep that feeling and give up Quidditch for a year, he'd bloody well do it!

The random bouts of crying were irritating to Harry but Severus had assured him that was normal with the amount of malnutrition he was suffering from. He had described the symptoms as part of a severe side effect called failure to thrive. Basically, Harry hadn't gotten enough to eat of the right things for so long that now he was getting it his body and emotions were out of whack and would take a long time to re-balance. The adoption magic hadn't had enough to work with so while Harry was far better off than before he still needed the potions. They also wouldn't even consider budging on his Quidditch ban until he got up to at least 150 lbs.

Over the next two months they got closer as a family, helped along by the adoption bond. Harry healed more in body and spirit every day as his parents worked to help him through everything. His enemies searched for them in vain as the media, public, and goblins came down hard on them. Dumbledore barely managed to keep his post as Headmaster and was on probation for the next five years. He wasn't even allowed to keep control of the school wards, that went to McGonagall. Harry was ecstatic at the lack of reported Death Eater raids. They all figured that Voldemort was waiting until school was back in session to give his interview.

Ian Malcolm got shang hied as his math and English teacher and bribed into tutoring Draco as well. Lucius visited the dig site regularly while Harry and Draco became if not friends than at least temporary allies. One day Draco managed to talk Harry into pranking Ian and his daughter, the results surprised everyone.

"Okay, you're sure this will work?" Harry asked Draco, staring at him and the potion ingredients with intense concentration.

"Relax, Uncle Sev has been teaching me about potions since I was really little. I know what I'm doing. Just make sure it doesn't get on Uncle Sev," Draco warned as he finished up the color changing potion before helping Harry load it up into balloons and a bucket.

They planned to use the potion to dye Ian's skin purple for the next week and hopefully catch his daughter, Kelly, at the same time. They were both highly annoyed at the "are you stupid" looks she kept giving them. The two of them had ended their rivalry when Harry apologized for letting Ron answer him on the train. Harry felt the need to point out that he hadn't ever actually answered the blond and Draco admitted that he had been a prat. None of the adults had to interfere after that, they did have to be on guard for joint pranks but called it a small price for the lack of drama.

"So were any of them really your friends?" Draco asked as they carefully set the filled balloons in a box to carry them, complete with plenty of cushioning charms.

"Luna, probably the twins. Ron just... he's a prat, a jealous prat. I can understand needing the money but did they have to take mine? They could have asked and I would have shared what I knew about," Harry said, pain still lacing his voice from the betrayal.

"And Granger?" Draco asked neutrally.

"I'm not really sure. It seems more like she was tricked or threatened but I don't know. If she was then why didn't she say something? She knows I would have tried to help," Harry said, visibly upset.

"I can get the rest of Slytherin house to help sort out Granger and get back at the idiots. We'll snag the twin demons and make them drink some of Uncle Sev's Veritaserum before we decide what to do about them. After all you're a snake now that Uncle Sev adopted you," Draco pointed out happily.

"The hat wanted me to be a snake any way and dad is making me stay in his quarters when we get back. The two of them are insisting that I get re-sorted so I'll probably be wearing silver and green by the end of the feast," Harry told him wryly.

"You're a snake that hid as a lion? No wonder we had so much trouble," Draco muttered balefully, making Harry laugh as they snuck about the camp setting up the prank. It was as they were rounding the corner of the truck that Ian drove that the two of them tripped over a large rock and sent the box of balloons straight at a startled Kelly. She shrieked in alarm, throwing up her hands and they froze in mid-air, never reaching her.

"You're a witch!" Draco said in excitement and amazement, just as Severus, Alan, and Ian ran up to see what was going on. Ian immediately snatched up his daughter and backed away.

"Well this is a surprise," Alan said neutrally as Severus scowled at his sheepish son and godson. With drawing his wand the Potion Master set things to rights, placing the balloons back into the box.

"You.. you know?" Ian stammered, holding his daughter close, almost protectively.

"Severus, Harry, and Draco are wizards and go to Hogwarts. Well, Severus teaches there and the two rascles are students," Alan corrected gently. The way Ian slumped in relief told him everything he needed to know.

"Where does your daughter attend?" Severus asked politely, quickly gathering the boys to his side to keep them out of mischief.

"I managed to find her a private tutor for after regular school," Ian admitted, keeping his daughter close as they talked. She glared pure fury at the boys but didn't try to get away. She had learned to stay close to him after the mess on Isla Sorna, Site B.

"She's welcome to join the boys in lessons. I'm tutoring Harry especially on Potions and while Draco is a bit weak with Defense," Severus offered quietly.

"That's fine. She's doing alright and I don't want her thinking its alright to use magic for every little thing. It isn't a cure all and using it for everything will make her lazy. Its summer break and she deserves a chance to be a kid," Ian said with a shake of his head.

"We don't want the boys thinking that either. Harry already knows that it is only a tool and Draco has trouble remembering but we aren't his parents. Admittedly, Severus is his godfather but if the boy won't listen there's little we can do. Its actually one of the reasons he's taking summer lessons with Harry. Here at the dig site we have to do most things without magic and he's learning the value of hard work," Alan said with a laugh, successfully breaking the tension as the children calmed down.

"So, how much did Hammond's little playground help you to deal with the magic?" Ian asked conversationally. "I know it helped me."

"Oh, quite a bit. I know I already introduced you to Harry but perhaps I should introduce you properly. Ian, this is my son, Harry Potter. Severus and I blood adopted him about a week after I got off of Isla Sorna," Alan told him with a wry smile.

"Harry Potter?! Gee Alan, you really jumped into the deep end on that one," Ian said with a laugh that took the sting out of his words.

"He's my friend," Draco declared, glaring at the man with jealousy clear in his eyes. He knew how interesting Harry thought the man was. He'd caught them arguing about chaos theory on more than one occasion as Harry tried to understand it.

"Draco!" Harry groaned. "Sometimes you're as bad as Ron."

"Take that back!" Draco shouted, lunging at his new friend only to slam into Severus when he stepped between them.

"Draco! You know to behave better than this," Severus scolded, keeping between the two boys. Harry just looked at Draco sadly and wondered if the tentative friendship they developed would last, especially after their return to Hogwarts. The blond was even more jealous than Ron in some ways and it really bothered Harry.

"We have a truce. I'm not sure I can really call you friend yet... not after what they did," Harry told him softly. The wind immediately left Draco's sails as he looked at the Gryffindor helplessly.

"I'm sorry," Draco apologized. "I just... you _know_ I never really had any friends before. Blaise, might count but I'm not sure."

Harry nodded but didn't say anything else.

"Draco, five years of animosity do not simply disappear. Its honestly a miracle that the two of you have a truce, for which I am very glad. I would not have forced the two of you to get along but it makes my life easier," Severus told them both sincerely.

"Come on, we'll go get ice cream for everybody or something. Thanks for the help Ian, really," Alan said gratefully, leading the boys away for a store run. Severus nodded politely and disposed of the prank materials before heading back to his summer brewing for the Hospital Wing.


	11. Lost Grim, Found Hatchling

Severus had fought hard to make his son understand over the summer and Alan had fought just as hard. With Harry's reluctant permission they had told the people in charge of the dig a little about the abuse he had suffered. Every single one of them showed understanding when either man had to drop everything and deal with Harry, whether that entailed comforting him or punishment. The two months at the dig had Harry blooming, learning to trust his parents, and showing more confidence than Severus had ever seen him show. Harry respected them and they were both proud of how far he had come by the time his school letter arrived.

Harry's Hogwarts letter arrived late and had Severus muttering threats under his breath. The man technically had to return to the school the next day to sort out the lesson plans and classroom. It was barely a week until term start and Severus didn't think it was a coincidence that Harry's letter had arrived so late. Apparently, the Headmaster was playing games again. He had no doubt that one or both of them would be called to the old man's office the moment they stepped on the grounds.

Severus was, however, thankful that they had received Harry's letter at breakfast. The poor owl was exhausted and Harry fussed over it. Hedwig had stayed with Hagrid for the summer because Harry hadn't wanted to risk taking her back to the Dursleys. It had turned out for the best because the other paleontologists would have been overly curious at them having a Snowy Owl for a pet. Though Alan thought Ian might have gotten a kick out of the entire idea.

It didn't take much to gather Harry up for the supply trip in Diagon Alley that day. Alan begged off, saying that it was a more personal bonding time for the two of them before they had to face the school. Severus grumbled a bit but both his, by now, partner and son could tell he wasn't really fussed about the situation. Harry wasn't really surprised that they ran into Voldemort, more annoyed really, especially after that last vision. He really wanted to know what had happened after the connection broke, especially since the overall feel of a prank was what had kept him from worrying about Sirius.

"Hello Harry. Did Black deliver my message or do I have to _talk_ with him again?" Voldemort asked with a smirk from behind them, making Harry jump in surprise.

"The mutt hasn't been anywhere near us, my lord," Severus said with a puzzled frown.

"That's strange," Voldemort actually looked worried at this news. "I let him go without penalty as long as he delivered that overweight brat to a police station or near Marge Dursley. I even had them dropped off in the muggle world to avoid him being caught by Aurors and Kissed. He even appreciated the prank, once he realized that he wasn't going to get cursed. I had to swear on my magic that I meant our little Harry no harm but he was happy to hear I wouldn't be trying to kill his godson any more."

"Did you tell him where we were?" Severus asked keenly.

Voldemort shook his head no and explained. "I couldn't since I purposefully did not look for the information or ask Lucius. You knew how to contact me if you needed anyone else to help guard him or pull him out of trouble. Lucius checked on you regularly whenever he brought Draco for those joint lessons. I didn't see a reason to know, especially since I knew you three needed time."

Something inside Harry's chest snapped and he felt the grief of loss. Vaguely, he identified it as the godparent-godchild bond that had hummed in the back of his mind when ever he was near Sirius, helping them get along. He knew somewhere Sirius had just died as he slowly collapsed into unconsciousness.

Harry slowly woke to a quiet conversation. Staying as still as possible he did his best to identify the voices and their threat level. When he recognized them as Severus, Lucius, Alan, and Voldemort he relaxed. A new wave of grief hit him, dragging a sob from his sore body. Severus and Alan were instantly by his side, gently lifting him up into a joint hug as he burrowed into their jacket and robe respectively.

"What happened?" Alan asked gently.

"Sirius," Harry sobbed, unable to produce more than an inarticulate cry after saying his name. A sense of dread filled Severus as he met the eyes of the other men.

"The mutt is dead, isn't he?" Severus asked softly. He felt Harry nod against his side as a new wave of sobs engulfed his son. "Stupid mutt, you aren't supposed to go and get yourself killed."

Harry cried even harder until he was simply drained of all tears and fell asleep in their arms. The next two days he could barely make himself move. Severus refused to leave his side, knowing the effects of a broken godparent bond. The bond had immediately drawn Harry and Sirius close but it was also designed to help speed up the grieving process so that a new godparent could be chosen if the godchild was underage. Unfortunately, this was a bad thing for Harry as he already had so much trauma in his short life that it made the accelerated grieving potentially dangerous.

In an act of desperation at slowing the dangerous downward spiral Voldemort could feel Harry slipping into he purchased a very special egg. The egg came from not a well respected pet shop or a shady menagerie. No, he went straight to the goblins and asked for a prefect familiar for Harry. One transfer of funds later and he left the bank with a jet black egg that sported a few dark grey spots that was half the size of his palm.

The crack of his arrival drew little attention when he appeared at the edge of the camp site where the small family's magical tent was set up. Not even bothering to check that he had gone unnoticed Voldemort slipped inside the tent. He found a very worried Alan, a listless Harry, and a desperate Severus. Without saying a word he slipped his hand into his pocket and carefully withdrew the egg. Taking one of Harry's hands he gently wrapped it around the precious shell before taking his other hand and doing the same.

"~Come, hatchling speaker, come, _Harry_ , call to your familiar.~" Voldemort hissed gently. "~Can you not feel the fragile life? Can you not hear its call? Will you allow it to flicker and die?~"

"~Go away.~" Harry hissed barely twitching.

"~Once you have your familiar. Nagini saved me from something much like this and I will not see you wither and die. Call to the magic within the egg, let it taste you, let it bond with you.~" Voldemort ordered softly, refusing to switch to English as he felt the egg warming under his touch.

"~I hurt.~ I hurt. IhurtIhurtIhurt," Harry whimpered, switching between languages.

"The egg and the bond it offers will help," Voldemort soothed, finally switching back to English. "Allow your magic to reach for the life inside of it Harry. Once the egg has hatched your familiar will help you with the pain, but you must take care of it first. To do that you need to let your fathers help you with the pain. The way you've shut down isn't good for you. Its scaring all of us and we want you better. We don't want you hurting any more. That's why I found you this very special egg. It will hatch into the best familiar for you. If you are very strong it will even help you to bond with other creatures as additional familiars. Can you try? Please?"

Harry slowly reached within himself, stretching past the agonizing pain and into the throbbing well that was his magic. He softly, almost listlessly, called to a strand of it and allowed the magic to flow from his core, along his arm, and into the egg. The sharp spike of pleasure and joy had him gasping and shooting upright in his seat. Shocked, Harry stared wide eyed at the egg as it shifted from grey speckled jet black to a royal blue with splotches of green and silver. Instinctively cradling it to his chest he crooned at it before leaning back to snuggle against his relieved Potions Master father.

"I don't hurt so much any more," Harry said in wonder as he fell asleep, the egg giving off soft pulsing light as the intense bonding began.

"Thank you, you may have just saved his life," Severus said softly, careful not to jostle the slightly smiling, sleeping teen who happened to be lying half in his lap.

"I know, I could feel him getting worse," Voldemort said with a relieved sigh aimed at Harry. "I had heard of muggles using small or cute animals and pets to coax people out of dangerous depressions at some point. I thought that a true familiar might be able to at least stabilize him. I found out what happened, Black got pinned by one of the Dursley woman's dogs when he dropped off the cousin. He couldn't get away and they used him as a chew toy for a couple of days. One of them played a touch to rough the day Harry collapsed and snapped his neck. The only thing that had been keeping him alive was his magic and the scent of dog from his animagus form."

Both Alan and Severus grimaced at the news but were too focused on Harry to much care. They sat there waiting for Harry to wake up, doing little more than watching Harry and drinking tea. It was nearing midnight when the pulsing of the egg started to speed up and Harry began to get restless. A quiet sound from Harry perfectly coinciding with the first crack of the egg had them all paying even more attention to teen and egg. They all wonder what the perfect familiar was for Hogwarts' star seeker.

Harry for his part was wide awake by the second loud crack split the air and staring in fascination at the birth of his familiar. After the egg had his full attention Harry's magic flowed forwards, surrounding the egg and speeding up the hatching. A slime covered tiny wing broke free first, then a foreleg, then the opposite hindleg.

The first thing Alan noticed about the handpaws and claws of the reptile he could see bonding with his son was the single raptor retractable claw on each handpaw. The memory of having a much larger version aimed at him while surrounded by Raptors made him shiver. It also told him very clearly that whatever was hatching was a very dangerous predator.

Quietly, Alan drew Voldemort back and got him to cast a notice-me-not spell on Severus. Severus looked at them quizzically but quickly went back to watching the birth of Harry's familiar. His plan to keep Harry safe was to make absolutely sure that his familiar saw the teen first and imprinted on him. The imprinting would give Harry a level of protection from his familiar no matter what happened to anyone else.

A few seconds after the spell had been cast a mini-dragon like creature, covered in slime, tumbled free of the egg. Harry cooed at it, absolutely delighted at the successful birth. Green eyes met bright gold and the magic between them visibly sparked, the imprinting drastically reinforcing the already forming familiar bond. Looking at it the small dragon looked almost like a cross between Norberta and a Compy (Compsognathus) but with separate bat wings and longer forelimbs. The little thing opened its mouth, showing thin needle sharp teeth before giving off a creeling cry of hunger.

"Harry, conjure a bowl and some water for it to drink while I pull out some of the left over stew meat and warm it up," Alan said calmly. "You can see if it will take the meat from your hand. If the little one latches on and won't let go you won't be allowed to handle it without those potion gloves that Severus insisted we get you."

"Yes dad," Harry murmured absently, quickly summoning his wand without a word and barely a thought from his room in the tent before conjuring both bowl and water. Alan ignored it for the moment in favor of getting the meat out and warming it enough not to be frozen. He dumped it into a bowl before quickly handing it to his son.

"One piece at a time son, we don't want him making himself sick," Severus murmured, absently breaking the notice-me-not spell.

Harry was entranced by the slime covered baby and very carefully fed him a single piece of meat at a time. A small hiccup of ice shards told them that the little one had some type of ice breath. They would have to watch for that and ice proof as much as possible. Harry didn't care, all he cared about was watching his new familiar greedily gobble down more and more meat bits until his belly practically bulged. When the little monster had eaten nearly twice its apparent weight in food he flopped down on the table and chirruped at Harry.

"Raja, his name is Raja," Harry told them excitedly, looking up at them with sparkling eyes. The first they had seen in a very long time, if ever.

"A new species and you named him 'King'," Severus said with an amused snort, earning an annoyed hiss of garbled parseltongue from the creature.

"Raja said something that sort of translated to him being a... Proto-dragon? Something called an Ancient Venomfang?" Harry looked at his new friend inquisitively, wondering if he had said it right and receiving a cheerful chirp in reply.

"You can't do anything normal can you?" Voldemort asked wryly.

"Doesn't seem like it," Harry hummed in agreement, his deadly depression well and truly broken.

An irritated chirp had him grinning openly as he summoned a washcloth and carefully bathed the small creature. Using what was _supposed_ to be drinking water to wash him each scale, claw, and wing was carefully cleaned. They both sighed in deep appreciation as Raja fell asleep and Harry gave the little dragon one last swipe of the cloth.

Now that Raja's scales were clean they could barely detect a rippling wave like pattern in the shifting color of his dark green scales. If one didn't focus on an individual scale it almost looked like the shifting shadows one might see deep in the forest. Carefully turning his new friend over, Harry discovered that his underside was shades of light blue shifting to white. Just the thing that someone might see if they looked up at the sky during a nice day.

"We will have to discover what he eats, how big he will grow, and if he is venomous," Severus rumbled softly. "As a true bonded familiar _no one_ can take him from you and he will live as long as you do. If anyone attacks you Raja will defend you and be well within his rights. If anyone attacks your little Raja the same applies, for you are considered one person now. Let's get you into a proper bed, brat. We have to be at the platform in a few days. Thankfully, we had most of your things when you collapsed. I will owl order the rest once we are at Hogwarts."

"Is Alan coming?" Harry asked hopefully.

"No, I'm not. I can't even see the school because of some of the safety wards," Alan said sadly. "I'll try to visit but getting around the wards might mean waiting until Hogsmeade weekends to see you. Lucius actually does have some possible fossils for me to look at so its not like I'm going to be bored out of my mind waiting for you."

"So have you decided what you are going to call each of us?" Severus asked teasingly, relieved that Harry was quickly bouncing back to normal now that the magical grieving process had both run its course and been broken.

"I'm not sure. Dad feels right but I can't call both of you dad. Papa sounds a little childish and father is to formal," Harry admitted, absently picking up and cradling Raja carefully in his hands.

"Tad is welsh for father and sounds similar to dad, will that suffice?" Voldemort offered with a relieved chuckle of his own.

"Perfect!" Harry declared, lighting up the whole room with his smile.

"Its well past bed time," Severus said softly, urging Harry to his feet before ushering him to his room. Handing him the remains of the meat in case Raja needed feeding again the Bat of the Dungeons tucked his son into bed. Voldemort took his leave and they all spent a much more restful night than the previous three... until Raja woke them with his baby cries of hunger at dawn.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is a good possibility for a second and third familiar. For at least the next three chapters Harry will not be looking for or finding a romantic partner.


	12. Missed Birthday

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please remember that law enforcement in both worlds were still searching for Sirius and that Marge, with ripper as example, trained her dogs to be vicious killers. So, arrest warrant + sadistic dog breeder/trainer/owner Marge = nasty dogs willing to attack.  
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Within the first 24 hours Raja had grown a crest out from the flat area of his skull. It was similar to the one that Norberta had when she hatched in Hagrid's hut during Harry's first year. His golden colored eyes were quickly bleeding into the same emerald green that Harry had, a visible sign of the familiar bond. Severus quickly learned to ward his potions lab and ingredients storage cupboard to keep the little menace out. Harry sheepishly offered to pay for the eaten ingredients while Raja sat next to him smugly burping up multi-colored bubbles.

"And how exactly did Raja know what would and wouldn't hurt him? Harry, you have to be more careful. Babies, once they can move around, get into all sorts of things. If you don't keep a good watch on him the next thing he gets into or eats could kill him," Severus scolded, happy that Harry was back to normal but irritated at the little proto-dragon and his recklessness.

Raja chirped comfortingly and rubbed his head against Harry's cheek from his perch on his wizard's shoulder. The teen looked at his feet in a mix of sadness and shame. Seeing the pain in his son's posture so soon after breaking the magical depression from Black's death Severus couldn't resist giving him a quick hug.

"Why did Bellatrix hit Sirius with a spell that stopped him transforming?" Harry asked out of the blue, freezing Severus in place still wrapped around him. This was new information that Voldemort hadn't given them. They still hadn't had a chance to discuss what had happened with Harry but for him to know any part of his godfather's death spoke of his personal power. He hadn't even come into his magical maturity yet!

"What else do you know? I realize we haven't had a chance to talk to you about what happened and how we found out but that doesn't mean we won't listen," Severus told him, hugging him tighter while being careful not to dislodge Raja.

"It was _Ripper_. Aunt Marge didn't care that her bloody dogs cornered Sirius and bit through his leg. She and Dudley watched like it was some form of sick entertainment! He couldn't shift or he might have gotten away. He even tried signaling the order, they didn't come and Ripper snapped his wand after that. Raja helped me through seeing it while he was still stuck in the egg," Harry sobbed, still sad over his godfather's death but no longer at risk from severe depression. Raja crooned comfortingly before nipping at his ear in an attempt to get his attention.

"I don't know Harry. I really don't. I don't know every little thing that happened and I don't know if Black could have or should have done something to get away. All I know is that you're still hurting and that the mutt is the reason. I would cheerfully strangle him for hurting you," Severus informed him solemnly. "I am, however, glad that Raja helped you even before he met the rest of us."

"You'd strangle him for all the pranks he's pulled on you," Harry corrected with a wet laugh.

"That too but you're more important to me," Severus agreed, correcting him right back.

"Thanks, Dad. Is Tad going to see us off to the train?" Harry asked quietly. Severus gave a solemn nod, earning himself a happy grin from his son.

"I'll tell you a secret, there's a teachers carriage and one of us always ride to school with the rest of you. Minerva is supposed to ride the train this year but I sent her a note. She doesn't mind if the two of us join her or if Miss. Lovegood joins her in the teachers compartment," Severus said mischievously. Harry's bright laugh made all the trouble bargaining with the cat worth it. Two weeks without excessive point loss to Gryffindor and "forgetting" to tell her that Harry was going to be resorted at the opening feast. Revenge for so many years loosing the house cup and the Quidditch cup would be sweet.

"One more thing, your birthday gifts came late and then I had to check them in case of curses. Some of them _were_ cursed or booby trapped, I'm sorry to say. The ones from the twin demons, Luna, and Neville were not. I had to destroy the one from Dumbledore, there were far to many compulsion charms and it was practically soaked in loyalty potion," Severus told him carefully. "You should have reminded us about your birthday. We would have gotten you gifts and a cake as is proper."

"Its alright, I stayed up like every year," Harry told him, happy that he'd gotten anything. Severus made him meet his gaze and realized that Harry never had a proper birthday, not really.

"They didn't give you anything for your birthday? What about Christmas?" Severus growled angry on Harry's behalf.

"Hedwig was my first gift... Hogwarts was my first Christmas," Harry admitted. Raja eyed his father carefully before tucking himself comfortingly under Harry's chin with a satisfied sigh.

"Well that just won't do. Go get your Tad and we'll have a late party for you, just the three of us," Severus said stubbornly. Raja cheeped in clear agreement as Harry lit up and dashed for the dig site in search of Alan. Dr. Grant was practically dragged back to the tent and gave Severus a bemused smile of the head of their happily energetic son.

"We need to have a late birthday party. I finished checking all of those packages that came a few days ago," Severus said, hinting at what was going on. Alan's eyes went wide. It was clear he was mentally cursing over having missed Harry's birthday, no matter the excuse.

"So then, remind me when your birthday is and how old you are?" Alan said in a teasing voice that made Harry laugh.

"July 31st and I'm 16!" Harry said gleefully.

"16 huh? Well then we have to make sure you have a good birthday, even if it is a bit late," Alan said stoutly, he quickly imitated Rexy and playfully chased Harry around the main room of the tent. Raja squawked indignantly before retiring to the table where he could watch the impromptu game of chase.

"Brat, go get washed and into something cleaner. You're a mess from the dust and dirt at the site," Severus told him in amusement once the two of them were done playing. Harry happily complied, Raja coming along so that he could bask in the steam of the bathroom.

"What are we going to get him?" Alan asked quickly the moment they heard the water go on.

"I have a small house but it has bad memories and isn't in the best area. I don't know about your living situation and I think Harry needs the stability of an actual house," Severus admitted with a frown. "He's come far but a tent, by its definition in our culture, is temporary. Hogwarts is home for me and probably for our brat but you can't really live there with us. I also don't like that the old fool has the power to evict us for virtually any reason."

"Do we have the finances to even buy a place?" Alan asked doubtfully. "I'm on the move so much from dig to dig that this tent is actually better than a house for my work travel. The only exception is when I'm doing lectures at the university. I don't think we should touch Harry's inheritance. For one he could see it as the same type of betrayal as his friends. For another he needs to know that whatever happens we will take care of him."

"I might be able to get Lucius to help. He's got more than enough and I have plenty of blackmail on him," Severus said thoughtfully.

"Simply embarrassing or actually damaging?" Alan asked seriously. If it was the more fun kind of blackmail just to give the two friends the excuse that was one thing but something that would actually do harm was something else.

"Both, but he knows I would never use the more serious sort without a good reason, like protecting my family. He has nearly the same standards when it comes to volatile information. No, I'd use some of the stupid stuff he got up to in school or the fact that he forgot his wife's birthday one year and had me cover for him until he could get back. Nothing really damaging with how strong their marriage is, more amusing and useful for teasing," Severus said reassuring his partner.

"Ah, alright if you can talk him into it. We can pay him back in installments or something," Alan said, relaxing.

Severus nodded and quickly dashed off a note with the proposal, summoning one of the Malfoy house elves for quick delivery. Lucius' return note asked what they wanted in a house and countered the minor blackmail with a mention of his own blackmail material and scolding for thinking he wouldn't help. Severus read this and snorted before outlining the details. It had to have a good potions lab, an area nearby where Harry could fly, four bedrooms, a garden area, a floo connected fireplace, access to muggle roads, and be available for them to move in immediately. Finally, he admitted that this was going to be Harry's late birthday present before sending off the note. The return note asked about the Prince estate, much to Severus' confusion, and said to check with the goblins.

"I'm ready!" Harry said, dashing up to the table in time to see the scattered notes and Severus' confused look. "What's wrong?"

"Lucius was going to help me with something but suggested I check with the goblins about it. Do you mind a quick trip to Gringotts before we go searching for your birthday present in Diagon?" Severus asked quickly. They might as well get him a smaller gift in case they couldn't get a house on such short notice.

"Sure! I love the cart rides," Harry said brightly. Raja hissed his curiosity, nuzzling his way from under his owner's hair.

"Adrenaline junky," Alan said fondly as he ruffled Harry's slightly damp hair. They made their way outside and Severus quickly apparated them all to Diagon Alley.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The major suggested pairings for Harry at the moment are:  
>  Harry/Voldemort  
>  Harry/Owen  
> There was one request to not use Severus, Lucius, or Voldemort. For those who wanted to see Draco as Harry's partner... sorry, not in this story.


	13. Happy Birthday

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took so long, musey threw a fit over some of the logistics and legal implications.  
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The goblins were surprised to see them and quickly hustled the trio to a manager's office before any of them could get a word in edgewise. Harry caught a surprised glimpse of Voldemort patiently waiting in line as they were hustled past. The surprise and laughter that danced in those ruby eyes told him that it really was coincidence that they were both at the bank. Idly, Harry thought to try something. Focusing on his scar and the piece of the other man's soul Harry sent a silent request that he wait for them when he was done with his own business. To the Gryffindor's delight Voldemort echoed back with a sense of agreement and amusement as the small family was led to the same office as before.

"I presume that your arrival has to do with Heir Potter's naming in the will of Sirius Black?" the goblin manager asked gravely.

"Actually, we hadn't thought of that. We were going to ask about the Prince estate as suggested by a friend," Alan said carefully. "Harry fell into a dangerous depression when he felt his godfather die and until recently we were more focused on his survival than much of anything else. We would like to address that but until now we weren't aware of the possibility."

The goblin manager regarded them thoughtfully and pulled out the files on Harry and his birth parents. He then pulled out a few on Severus, a thin one on Alan, and the final one addressing Sirius' connection to Harry. Ringing a bell to called for refreshments he prepared himself for yet another long meeting.

"As you are aware and requested we made a full inquiry into the Potter estate and Heir Potter's finances. Due to your own connection with him this included your own finances. The Prince estate falls under Potion Master Severus Snape as you already know," the goblin began only to be interrupted.

"No, we do not know. To my knowledge I and my mother were disinherited and the Prince estate reverted to goblin control and ownership with the Lordship falling to the ministry upon the death of my grandfather," Severus countered with a deep frown. The goblin manager stared at him for a moment before giving a deep growl. He picked up a small stone ball on his desk, tapping it lightly to make it glow before barking something at it in gobbledygook and slamming it back into place, ending the glow.

"Phone?" Harry asked softly.

"It appears so, or at least something like it," Alan agreed equally softly, eyeing the fuming goblin with more than a little concern.

"It appears you were never informed as to the status of your grandfather's will. I personally penned the missive informing you of the will reading. One Albus Dumbledore appeared in your stead with a letter confirming that you had authorized his actions on your behalf. This entitled him to act as proxy Lord Prince pending your assumption of the title. The time limit ran out six months later as you had yet to take up your position of Lord Prince and not confirmed his place as your proxy nor had you contacted us on the matter. During that time Albus-too-many-names-Dumbledore voted on a number of laws using the Prince family seat on the Wizengamot. As you were clearly unaware of the inheritance all of the man's actions as proxy are automatically classified as fraud. Your ministry will be duly informed of the matter and all misappropriated assets will be recovered and returned or something of equivalent value will be provided. Gringotts _apologizes_ for the mishandling of your account," the goblin practically spat the apology but still managed to deliver it.

"As angry as I am I find no fault in the actions of Gringotts but do request that any further transactions of such size require a separate confirmation in person to prevent further misunderstandings," Severus said in a strangled voice, stuck halfway between barely contained rage and forced courtesy.

"There was a single proviso in your grandfather's will, requiring the designation of an heir before you passed or reached 50. Gringotts retained the letter he left for you as we were instructed to only deliver it into your hands alone. Your adoption of Mr. Potter covered the heir designation," the goblin told them handing a letter to the angry potions master. Severus absently pocketed it to read later when he was in a calmer state of mind.

"There were also some inconsistencies discovered in the Potter accounts, as was suspected. The goblin formerly in charge of those accounts is being dealt with appropriately under goblin law," the goblin informed them solemnly, stopping Severus cold while confusing Harry and Alan. "There were a number of fund transfers to several different vaults, authorized by Albus Dumbledore. Some of them were deemed valid expenses to be charged to the Potter accounts, most were not. In accordance with your request steps have been taken to obtain reparations. Be aware the affected may approach you in an attempt to arrange alternative payment, including a possible marriage contract."

"Now, that's just not right," Alan said with a scowl. "I don't like the idea that our son could be forced into a marriage, especially one that he doesn't want."

"Then you'll be pleased to know that my earlier request covers marriage contracts," Severus said softly, having managed to wrestle his earlier fury under sufficient control to sound deadly calm rather than murderously angry.

"There was one more thing that we needed time to re-confirm before bringing it to your attention. Apparently the magical contract with the Isla Sorna Velociraptor Ruling pack carried with it unspoken clauses. A written version automatically filed its self in our contract department. When your son was offered a place in the pack the only way the magic would have accepted his full refusal was if he had a previous connection to a different raptor pack. As there have been no packs for the last number of million years this was impossible. As such the magic accepted the adoption and the two of you became part of the pack by default as his parents upon his completion of the blood adoption. The magic which caused this is similar to why he is also considered to be a werewolf cub, more specifically the cub of Remus Lupin. When we attempted to contact Mr. Lupin to ensure a lack of damage or other changes to his bond with his cub we were unable to locate him," the goblin told them bruskly. "The situation may have been affected by any number of things of which we cannot be aware but I felt you needed to be aware of your son's status change and the possible complications. On our records he is currently listed by a new title, Heir of Velociraptors. Should something happen to either of you guardianship will first revert to Lord Slytherin as the only human who has a close enough claim. A claim that was verified during your previous meeting on goblin land. If Lord Slytherin can not act as his guardian then guardianship will go to the Royal Velociraptor pack. If you select a replacement godparent please keep in mind their selection will affect Lord Slytherin and as such he must be informed."

"That... that seems fair," Alan said, clearing his throat in a mix of nervousness and confusion.

"At least Voldemort's not trying to kill me any more. If he gets to raise me it would really suck if he still figured I needed to die," Harry said grumpily, incidentally clarifying some of Alan's confusion. He also managed to sooth Severus, earning a light bop to the head for being grumpy over the lack of attempts on his life.

None of them pointed out that Voldemort was probably immortal for the moment, nor did they comment on Remus being unavailable. Harry was a bit sad that he hadn't seen the werewolf for so long but he also knew that, like Severus and Sirius originally had, Remus saw more James than Harry. Alan and Severus had taken nearly a week to make him stop feeling guilty for not being what people wanted him to be, especially his parents. He still had the occasional relapse into guilt for not being as expected but they weren't as intense or potentially dangerous as they had been. Harry knew to consider his own safety now and not just the expectations and orders of others. He was also glad that Snape had realized he was not James Potter. It would have been a nightmare to live with him otherwise.

"As the newly acknowledged representative and Heir of the Ancient Peoples a very old contract with the goblin nation reactivated and made its self known. Mr. Potter is accorded status as a full member of our people and has the right to reclaim goblin artifacts on our behalf. According to our records it was also recently his birthday, as such we of Gringots do now gift him with his first dagger. May you always bring strength to our peoples and may your vaults never empty," the goblin told Harry formally, handing over a goblin-forged, silver blade the length of Harry's forearm complete with matching sheath and belt. Completely floored, Harry took it and pulled the blade out enough to mentally check both quality and keenness, much to the goblin's obvious approval.

"Put it on and never take it off if you can help it. Wear it into the shower and bring it to bed with you if you can get away with it. Do not hesitate to use it should a situation occur to make it prudent," Severus told him seriously. Harry nodded his understanding and quickly used the belt and leg strap to obey the obvious order. Raja watched the entire process with interest and helped to keep the leather from tangling.

"It is good to know some wizards know the value of goblin craftsmanship," the goblin said with an appreciative gleam in his eye.

"Are any of the Prince holdings habitable?" Severus asked hesitantly, glancing at Harry who was currently cuddling Raja happily and admiring his gift.

"Several, I would recommend using the townhouse in London or the small cottage in Hogsmeade judging by your past purchases," the goblin suggested, glancing between him and Harry with a knowing look, the next part he said softly. "The perfect place to raise a family."

Severus nodded firmly before turning and getting Harry's attention.

"Harry? I know you probably consider Hogwarts to be your home but how would you feel about us getting a home that all three of us can live in? Alan can't go to Hogwarts after all," Severus suggested gently, he was caught completely off guard by Harry looking up in absolute joy before launching himself at Severus and bowling him over, chair and all.

"I think we can take that as a yes," Alan said with a laugh as Harry tried to squeeze his father to death. They quickly arranged for the cottage to be cleaned and to hire a house elf before taking Harry out for ice cream.


	14. The Black Will

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The large chunks of text are from a recording.  
> Before anyone asks, no. The pairing (if any) for Harry is still undecided.  
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The ice cream break had been exactly what Harry had needed and allowed them to quickly return and hear Sirius' will. Harry had asked near the end of their snack if they could try to contact Moony. The way he had hesitated clearly told Severus that his son thought he would react badly to the request. This wasn't at all surprising considering his reaction to the man during Harry's third year. Severus had silently watched Harry fidget as Raja unconcernedly stole part of his ice cream before agreeing to send out inquiries but warning that if the goblins couldn't find him he probably wouldn't either. Harry quickly agreed and happily finished his treat.

Harry was more than a little surprised to find them being led to a different room when they returned for the will reading. The constant presence of his parents and, ironically, of Voldemort, who had joined them for ice cream, reassured him. However, it didn't negate the utter shock he felt when he saw who else was waiting in the room to hear the will read.

"Harry, my boy! Severus! How wonderful it is to see you on this fine day," Dumbledore said jovially, his twinkling eyes replaced by sparking granite.

"You will leave them alone if you in any way value the unspoken truce. I have no problem publicly denouncing you and calling for a blood feud. As Harry is considered part of my family that will include him as well. I verified it in front of the goblins and filed all the correct paperwork for the more unusual aspects of the situation," Voldemort told him curtly, ushering the small family over towards the seats next to Draco and his mother, Narcissa. No one noticed Raja moving to Alan and hiding in his shirt except for Alan himself, who didn't say anything. He just figured it was something that Harry desperately wanted to do at the moment, hid behind one of his parents.

Lucius was nowhere in evidence and Harry wondered what the blond was doing at that moment. He caught the edge of the goblin's vicious smirk in the corner of his eye before it disappeared behind the cool mask of professionalism. Harry was suddenly glad that he'd listened earlier and put on the dagger immediately, despite hoping to never have to use it. That's when he saw Remus.

The werewolf looked battered and exhausted but that could have easily been the full moon since it had been less than three days since the last one. Then he remembered how close the Remus had been to Sirius and Harry realized that he wasn't the only person who had been affected by Padfoot's death. Neither Severus nor Voldemort were fast enough to catch him as he dashed up to Remus and tackled him. The wolf lay under his cub on the floor, stunned for a moment before curling his arms around Harry and breaking down. Harry just clutched him tighter, offering the same comfort that his parents and familiar had given him when he felt Sirius die.

"My cub," Remus sobbed, clutching tight enough to leave bruises.

Harry ignored the slightly painful grip in favor of trying to sooth both wolf and man. Ron, Molly, and Ginny kept trying to interrupt and drag Harry away only to be blocked by Severus as Alan sat next to Harry and Remus. Harry caught a glimpse of Dumbledore's glare and realized the man had tried to take the Alpha position for Remus' wolf. Harry was stealing it from him and comforting Remus at the same time. Severus finally snapped at his former schoolmate.

"Wolf! Release my son," Severus nearly thundered only to be shocked at the immediate compliance.

Harry blinked in surprise from his new position in an equally surprised Alan's lap. A flash of insight told the potions master what had happened. Harry was Remus' alpha but at the moment he and Alan were _Harry's_ alpha pair. In releasing Harry he had recognized that he was beta to Severus and Alan with Harry being the pack cub.

"Who is your alpha!" Severus barked out, deciding to be on the safe side and double check his conclusions.

"Harry... you," Remus whimpered submissively.

"Good, now get up. You've gotten both yourself and Harry dirty," Severus said grumpily, pulling Alan and Harry with him to sit near the shocked Malfoys and a relieved yet amused Voldemort.

"But..." Harry started before trailing off in confusion.

"The blasted wolf acknowledged you as Alpha but also acknowledged that I am effectively your Alpha. As time progresses he will determine who else is in our pack and the rankings. I have no doubt that he will find himself if not at the bottom of the rankings than nearly so," Severus said grumpily, pulling Harry into his side in a cuddle hug. "If you manage to bond with him as a familiar, which I doubt but will not be surprised by with your luck, you are responsible for him. That means food, clothing, making sure he has a suitable job, and a place to live. I will not be pleased if he needs to live with us but I will accept it."

Harry's shout of joy and attempt to bowl over his father made Alan laugh. It also made him glad that he'd been trusted enough by his partner to be told about the ghastly prank. Alan knew exactly what Severus was risking to make that offer for the sake of their son. Whether Remus Lupin accepted a place in their home or not, for it was an honest offer, he knew Severus would likely have nightmares that night.

Remus settled down within easy arms reach of Harry and couldn't take his eyes off of his cub. He didn't care that the man he'd helped torment for years was now effectively in control of his life and knew it. All he cared about was that there was still one person left from his pack, his cub, Harry. That knowledge alone was enough to keep him from following his packmates and give him new life. The offer to be near his cub on the other hand was like finding a river of pure perfect water while dying of thirst. If he later discovered there was a price to pay for it he would do so gladly.

They only noticed that the goblins had kept Dumbledore away from them when he was shoved into a chair near the back of the room, none to gently. Voldemort eyed the goblin guards that had taken up station around the man with open amusement and a vicious gleam in his eye. Harry glanced over to see what the fuss was about before ignoring him in favor of his family. Once everyone was settled the presiding goblin got down to business.

"We are here to hear the contents of Sirius Orion Black, the 36th Lord Black," the goblin announced solemnly before waving his hand over a large white marble sphere, making it glow and project an image of Sirius above it. The image quickly began to speak, reciting the will being read.

"I, Sirius Orion Black, Lord of the house of Black, do hereby swear that I am of relatively sound mind and body. Shut up Moony! I, on this day of July 31st 1996, do now provide my living will and testament, forswearing all previous wills and related documents. Before we progress to who gets my stuff and all the ridiculous paperwork I have a few things to say," the image of Sirius was startling and made Harry glad that his dad was holding him close. "Moony, I trust you to protect our pup and I expect you both you and Harry to quit blaming yourself for my death. I have no doubt that I died during this blasted war nor that it was in some way protecting one or both of you. I will come back and prank your arses to kingdom come if I have to! I don't expect to see either of you on this side for a long time. I know that something happened with all the hubbub that's going on now and with Albus in danger of loosing his titles and everything. So, I thought I'd update my will and make sure that the two of you came out on top if something happened. That's one of the reasons both Albus and the Dark Lord are here. I didn't get a chance to ask you about some of the stuff being tossed around about you and your relatives. If what I'm hearing is true I don't want you near them again and would completely understand if you decide to side with ol' moldyshorts. Pup, Prongslet, Harry, no matter what you decide you have my support. To that end I declare you my heir and reveal that you have been my heir since the first week after your birth. Because of the danger of the situation we used an old family ritual that both blood adopted you into the Black family and hid your status. Which is why no one was able to get a read on who was the heir after me."

The unintelligible hubbub that exploded from the listeners forced a pause in the reading until everyone calmed back down. Severus grumpily found himself with a clingy werewolf wrapped around him almost as thoroughly as he was wrapped around his son. Alan just looked at the pile of wizards and werewolf in a combination of bemusement and amusement, planing on teasing Severus later. Their attention quickly returned to the projection as the goblin unpaused the recording.

"Anything I haven't designated to go somewhere goes to Harry as Lord Black. If Harry isn't yet 17 when this is read he is to receive the option of emancipation so that he can properly defend himself when he comes under attack. At such time I request that he take up the Black Lordship alongside the Potter Lordship. Because I've been hearing some nasty things about some of my pup's friends this next part is a little complicated. I gift 50,000 galleons to the Weasleys, for being a safe haven and friend to my godson. I gift 10,000 galleons each to Ronald Weasley, Hermione Granger, Fred and George Weasley, for standing by his side as friends and helping him survive the shite that Albus has allowed at Hogwarts. I designate an additional 100,000 galleons for Harry to distribute among his chosen friends barring anyone who is shown to be a traitor as Wormtail turned out to be," the loud complaints from Ron, Molly, and Ginny forced another pause in the reading and earned them murderous looks or looks of disgust from other listeners, especially the Malfoys.

"Can I designate who gets it now?" Harry asked from inside his cocoon of parent and werewolf.

"That is one of the requirements, it will be split evenly between the names you give us," the goblin said agreeably. "You can not be in doubt as to their status, however. If you in any way doubt their friendship or caring for you at the moment you can not provide them as recipients."

Harry nodded, taking a deep breath before reciting the names of those he still considered friend. "Fred Weasley, George Weasley, Luna Lovegood, Neville Longbottom, Griphook of Gringotts, Mark from the dig site, Draco Malfoy despite the newness of our tentative friendship, and Voldemort, born Tom Marvolo Riddle."

The shock that rippled through the room made Harry feel giddy yet apprehensive. The increased squeeze of Severus' hug and the low rumble of approval from Remus made him relax, happy in his choices. The rush of joyful, cavorting warmth down the bond he had with Voldemort didn't hurt anything either. The unexpected part came when Dumbledore moved. The curse he sent straight at Harry was accidentally intercepted by a Velociraptor bursting into the room. The horrible screech tapered off into an infuriated hiss. A hiss matched only by the three other raptors that had followed the first into the room.

"~STupid PrEY!~" the screech of fury from the lead raptor made Voldemort laugh.

"Looks like you crossed a line Albus," Voldemort said viciously, quickly putting himself between Harry and the raptors.

"~Kill the prey later. We need to find the treasured speaker,~" the biggest clearly ordered even as all four of them showed the old man their teeth.

"~I am a speaker,~" Voldemort offered cautiously. All the raptors swiveled their heads to focus on him but didn't retract their claws, only going so far as to hid their teeth behind reptilian lips.

"~I think they're talking about me,~" Harry hissed, forcing Remus and Severus to let him go before walking up to stand next to Voldemort. Alan, having seen this reaction before, watched the raptors in case they decided to attack but let Harry talk.

"~This is the speaker you feuded with?~" the first raptor asked cautiously.

"~Yes, there was a misunderstanding. He thought I hunted him,~" Harry explained quickly, keeping as much to the truth without trying to go into the morass of details that would be a proper explanation. They might not even understand the explanation simply because of differences in the two cultures.

"~I did not realize that magic said he was to have been my hatchling or at least trained by me. Instead, I listened to the falsehoods of the old one in the corner delivered by one of my own pack unknowing. If you had arrived moments later he would have successfully harmed Harry. I offer my thanks for preventing harm to our hatchling,~" Voldemort said seriously, bowing slightly to them in thanks.

"~Why are you all here? How did you get here?~" Harry asked curiously, deciding to address the hatchling comment later. Though he supposed it was a valid interpretation of the Horcrux and was probably better than some of the other ones.

"~The small warrior ones contacted us to confirm our agreement. They agreed to arrange for us to speak and assisted us into this territory. We scented you and got tired of waiting,~" the smallest and probably the youngest of the party explained in hyper voice that reminded Harry of Fred and George on a sugar high.

"~The old one is an enemy? Your anger and the stench of his fear practically shout it,~" the lead raptor asked as they turned to focus with deadly intensity on him.

"~You can't kill him! It would put the pack at risk,~" Harry warned them quickly.

"~Why ever not?~" Voldemort hissed mildly.

"~And how many would try to kill all of the pack after hearing how they took out Dumbledore!? He may be in disgrace but he is still powerful and decently respected for stopping the last Dark Lord as well as scaring _you_ ,~" Harry shot back with a growl.

"~He does not _scare_ me. He's hurt me and I am respectful of his influence and power,~" Voldemort said grumpily, fully confident in the fact that only Harry and the raptors could actually understand him at the moment.

"~You harmed the hatchling speaker and must pay a forfeit,~" the lead raptor finally decided.

"~The hatchling speaker has already demanded a forfeit and only the interference of the meddling old one has kept me from providing it,~" Voldemort hissed dryly. "~I will forever claim him as pack, family. In time I may take him as mate but not now. He needs time to heal and learn. He needs time to be pack and family.~"

"What do you mean take me as a mate but not now?!" Harry protested angrily, sliding back into English.

"You and I have become more than others. It will take quite a bit to kill either of us and the nature of what happened when you received your scar means that we have a longer life span than other wizards. I am merely leaving open the possibility of us choosing to become lovers in the future, nothing more. You aren't ready for a romantic relationship. If, in the future, I attempt to court you and you say no I will respect that. You have nothing to fear from me. Before you object on the grounds of our age difference there are larger ones accepted among magicals because of the effect of magic on our life spans," Voldemort explained in a soothing tone of voice. Harry just glared at him grumpily.

"~You didn't tell him about thinking he might be a good mate, did you?~" the lead raptor asked with an amused snap of her jaws.

"~No, I didn't. I suspect he will never accept me as a worthy mate but one can hope. For now I will protect him as pack. In time his feelings may change,~" Voldemort hissed in resignation. "~If he chooses another I will make sure that they will pay should they hurt him.~"

"Lovely! An over protective Dark Lord acting like an older brother," Harry said sourly, stalking over to stand next to his parents. Everyone recognized the grumpy tone and his parents relaxed at the clear indication that Voldemort wasn't going to try and snatch their son up, at least not right away.

"~Then we must only take a forfeit from the old one,~" the lead raptor said with a nod. A split second later there was a single harsh scream and Dumbledore was suddenly missing an arm, his colorful robes slashed. The smallest raptor had snuck within lunging range and taken the old man's left arm, destroying his robes in the process. He quickly darted back towards the others with his prize, standing there smugly as he showed off the stolen arm.

"~Hatchling, should the old one threaten you again call for us. We will well enjoy hunting in your territory. We will bring news of your continued health back to the pack and expect you to visit our territory soon. Bring the older speaker with you for proper pack judgement and acceptance trials,~" the lead raptor ordered, quickly ordering the arm dropped at Harry's feet before they dashed out of the room further into the bank. Voldemort vindictively incinerated the body part before banishing the blood near them and using his wand to right the chairs knocked askew. Raja emerged from his hiding spot in Alan's shirt at the scent of the blood to check on Harry.

"Shall we continue?" Voldemort asked innocently. Severus shot a blood clotting spell at Dumbledore's still bleeding shoulder, not bothering with anything else before taking his seat with an eye roll. Harry shot another glare at the older speaker before feeling himself yanked into Severus' side and the seat next to him once more. Raja took the chance to once more wrap himself around Harry's neck, hiding half under the wizard's hair.

"Why didn't you protect him from them?!" Molly demanded of the goblins.

"We understand parseltongue perfectly well and there is a long standing agreement between our people and those of the Ancient peoples. Any dragon, as one of their descendants, who wishes to leave Gringotts and be recognized as a possible patron need only invoke the rights of that treaty. They were here under diplomatic immunity to visit one of their pack members and proved that they understood the general restrictions. Shall we continue with the will reading?" the goblin told them blandly, mentally cackling at the affronted looks he was getting from most of the people in the room. There was a bunch of general muttering but they eventually moved forwards.

"Now that the obvious outburst is done. Moony you're getting that little cottage outside of Hogsmeade and no you can't give it back. You also can't give back the two vaults that have already been transferred to your name and purposefully redistributed with your own vault. You aren't getting out of having what you need," Sirius' image said stubbornly. Remus nodded his acceptance in clear shock at what his friend had left him. "Andromeda, I officially reinstate you and your family as members of the house of Black and release the dowry which should have been paid upon your marriage. Further more I order the formation of a 100,000 galleon dowry for your daughter, _Nymphadora_. Ha! You can't hit me for calling you that this time! Narcissa, your husband is a prat and if either you or your son wish to remain a part of the house of Black Draco at least needs to pass a six month training course learning about British Muggle culture. Or you and your family can establish a truce with my godson and swear an oath not to follow any orders involved in harming him unless you clear it with him. I know my godson, if he says you need to go ahead and hurt him then its for a good reason or you had a fantastic argument and were desperate enough to beg. Only my godson can relieve you of the oath requirement. Finally, I set aside 3 million galleons to go to whichever side Harry chooses to support. This includes his starting his own faction or choosing to remain neutral but help people leave so that they don't get caught between the sides. Should he not declare a side within five years the money will revert to the Black Estate. The last qualifier for the... lets call it a combat fund, is that the leader swear to never betray, harm, or otherwise destroy my godson. I think that's it... oh! Severus Snape is to get 200,000 galleons in compensation for the absolute hell I put him through and so that he can leave teaching if he likes. Harry, Snivellous might have been one of our main targets but he does know what he's doing and he's got one hell of a mean spell library. You picked well for finding someone who won't just die for you but will live if you ask it of him. Trust me, dying is easy, living? Not so much when everything feels like its gone."

Sirius' image faded away to absolute silence which was broken by a snarl from Harry's father. Raja hissing his agreement while trying to offer comfort to his wizard.

"Damn mutt. He had to go and say something like that," Severus growled, keeping Harry close in the pandemonium that erupted around the small family.


	15. Loyalties

The Weasleys refused to calm down. Arthur did his best through his obvious confusion but the twins yelling furiously at their younger siblings and mother didn't help any. Dumbledore tried to use his sense of authority to bring the chaos under control and get the goblins to double check. His loss of an arm and obvious pain from the, by now, crusted over wound didn't help him any. Voldemort sat next to his small family and smirked, with the Malfoys next to him. He was ready to toss up a shield or deflect an attack should Dumbledore try anything again. A sharp whistling screech from Raja startled everyone into silence.

"~Loud, noisy, painful creatures!~" Raja hissed at them from around Harry's neck. The obvious scolding made Severus smirk and the twins break out into grins.

"Aw, has our little harrykins found a pet?" Fred cooed as the identical menaces approached.

"I don't know Forge. I think he's found the perfect best mate," George said thoughtfully.

"Maybe you're right Gred," Fred said after a moment's consideration. Draco couldn't hid his snicker at their antics but the way Harry smiled happily told him it was the right move.

"Leave Harry's familar alone and no pranking our family," Severus said sternly, putting on his best Professor Snape glare.

"Of course Professor!" the twins chorused, giving Harry a conspiratorial look.

"At least now we know why mum had us go the muggle way to the train that year," George said, suddenly grim.

"We apologize for the despicable actions of our family and hope that you will not hold it against us," they said together, going so formal that they bowed deeply and waited for Harry to say something.

"You know if you don't get back up you're going to fall over," Harry said lightly, fighting back an unmanly giggle. The twins pretended to fall before righting themselves with wide grins.

"~Mirror redheads are part of my Harry's pack?~" Raja asked warily.

"~Yes, they ambush my enemies and make them look silly. Its hard to be scared of an enemy that looks silly,~" Harry hissed happily. Raja hissed contentedly and tucked himself back under the collar of Harry's robes and his trailing hair.

"You need a hair cut," Alan observed. Harry shrugged, completely unconcerned at how long the summer had made his unruly hair.

"What did you mean about the two of you being different?" Severus asked Voldemort suspiciously.

"I already explained my conclusions during our first meeting. What I failed to take into account at the time is that Harry likely now shares the same lifespan that I have attained. I am also the only one, aside from possibly the goblins, who might be able to safely return it to normal. He may never accept me as husband material but he will always have my protection and, if he likes, my friendship. At the moment our lifespan probably outstrips most known species. He needs to know that there is someone else in the same position, no matter how mad at me he might become because of it. Revealing it before it became obvious will give him a better chance of accepting it as reality before something forces the conclusions," Voldemort said with a wry chuckle. "His familiar, like my Nagini, will share his lifespan, giving him at least three other people to talk to."

"If you have the time taking the protective stance that you have is better in the long run, for both of you," Alan deduced shrewdly.

"Exactly. Harry will have a chance to safely come to terms with it, I will have a chance to prove my sincerity, and I will break anyone who decides its a good idea to hurt him," Voldemort said with a decidedly evil chuckle.

"You don't control me," Harry shot back furiously. Raja cheeped in confusion as to what they seemed to be arguing about matched with Harry's conflicting emotions.

"Why would I want to control you? You have parents for that and the time will give you a chance to heal emotionally," Voldemort pointed out reasonably. Harry felt oddly pleased with the reasoning matched by Raja's deep purr.

"I didn't like the reactions of those redheads, you twins, alright, but your family..." Alan said trailing off almost sheepishly.

"Its alright. We tried to help Harry as much as we could," Fred said with a negligent wave of his hand.

"We even purposefully got into trouble so he'd have time with Sirius since mum told all of us to keep them apart," George added loudly with a glare aimed at his mother.

"You what?! Molly why in the world would you do that?" the very obvious hurt in Arthur's voice had Harry wondering exactly how much the man had actually known about. Hermione, who had been unnaturally quiet the whole time saw the movement of Molly's wand and tackled Arthur out of the way. She made sure the two of them got near Harry and the twins so that they could all create a joint defense.

"That wasn't a wise thing to do Miss. Granger," Dumbledore said, his voice hard as steel.

"Lovely false trail of bribes you set up to show Harry. Thanks for that, the blood money came in quite handy getting my parents out of the country," Hermione practically snarled at the man.

"He was threatening your parents," Harry concluded angrily.

"And you, especially you, you're my brother and my parents couldn't understand what was happening. They don't even remember who I am anymore," Hermione said bitterly, her eyes shining with hate for the Headmaster. "Did you know that you can pay to have the goblin guards stand aside under certain circumstances? That's why the guards haven't really interfered. Dumbledore is getting fined for every spell that is being recorded as being cast right now. Did you also know that there is a way to get it revoked? I, Hermione Jean Granger, do hereby testify that Albus Dumbledore and his associates have in the past offered harm to the goblin nation and to Gringotts. I also testify to their plans for continued interference with goblin affairs!"

The moment Hermione's testimony left her mouth Dumbledore and the Weasleys, minus Arthur and the twins, were gathered up and summarily thrown out. The Tonks family was surrounded by guards who took them elsewhere to ascertain their complicity in the matter.

"That was a very dangerous charge to make Miss. Granger," the goblin said slowly. "We will need memory confirmation or other proof."

"I was an unwilling accomplice and wish to make reparations," Hermione said carefully. "I never wished any harm to come to my brother, even if we aren't blood related. Take what you need and know that I never agreed to any monetary transfers into my account. If it didn't come from my parents then I either didn't know about it or, for the ones from Dumbledore, it was done specifically to set me up. I swear on my life and magic that I would never offer malicious harm to Harry James Potter."

There was a crack of sound and for a split second a line of light stretched between Harry and Hermione. When everyone looked again they each had a single lock of hair that clearly belonged to the other.

"Congratulation, on the sibling adoption Miss. Potter-Granger," the goblin said as he collected the memories Hermione withdrew for them to view. "As you reported tampering with your accounts the traditional transfer of funds and acknowledgement as part of the Potter line will need to wait."

"I understand," Hermione said tiredly before turning to the twins. "Mind if I bunk with you until school starts? I probably lost any ministry job with how influential Dumbledore is, and a lot more besides."

"Are you asking us for a job?" Fred asked in mock shock.

"Think of it brother! Miss Goody-too-shoes herself! Brightest witch of her age! This is the perfect opportunity to corrupt her!" George said excitedly.

"Dad's still going to be living with us until mum is sorted," Fred pointed out quickly.

"So? Its not like we haven't bunked together before," George shot back playfully.

"And what does our silent backer say about this?" Fred asked as both twins turned on Harry expectantly. The groan of realization from Severus and the surprised laughter from Voldemort told them they had timed it perfectly. Harry glared at them but nodded his assent. Hermione had a guaranteed job and place to stay if something happened at Hogwarts or afterwards.

"You didn't realize I saw you give them the tournament winnings, did you?" Hermione asked in obvious amusement. Harry simply huffed at them all and turned his attention to playing with Raja.

"What's wrong?" Alan asked in obvious amusement.

"I can't argue to get their products banned now that I know our son owns part of the business. I can however ban them from my classroom on pain of confiscation and point deduction," Severus said sourly, glaring dangerously at the twins. "I want every recipe, charm, and counter for those blasted products in case of problems and accidents. I also want copies of anything new you release. Too many dunderheads find ways to get themselves hurt or in danger."

"Sir! Yes, sir!" they said giving him a very professional looking salute. It was with that cleared up that they left Gringotts to get ready for the new school year and the train ride.


	16. Braving the Hat's Displeasure

Severus and Harry met Hermione at the train station where George had dropped her off. They didn't say anything until they were seated in the teacher's compartment with Professor McGonagall. Somehow Luna had snuck in when they weren't looking so it became two adults, three students, and one familiar. Raja quickly snuck out of his hiding place and landing on a startled McGonagall's lap with a happy chirp.

"Might I ask what this little fellow is doing on the train? Much less with Students?" McGonagall asked archly, deciding to address the strange creature before the multiple students in the compartment.

"That's Raja, he's Harry's first familiar," Luna told her sweetly. "Of course Harry's adoption into the eminently powerful Velociraptor pack will help keep the line stable when they try to kill off the pack and make a new one. The muggles really are silly, killing creatures simply so that they can make new ones and try to control them so they fight battles for them. It really isn't the best of plans."

"They what!?" Harry demanded in shock at the same moment McGonagall demanded. " _Velociraptors?!_ "

"Its complicated but I promise to explain it once we are certain of a lack of privacy," Severus said almost tiredly. Harry's hug, on the other hand, made them both smile.

"How's Mr. Weasley?" Harry asked after a moment's silence during which his teachers had a stare down.

"Still in shock but recovering. He's not happy that half his family seems to have just been using you. He also isn't happy that they apparently worship Dumbledore enough to break laws on his say so. Bill got checked by Gringotts and given a warning because of what happened. Charlie is still dragon obsessed and heard about your familiar. He wants to meet him, possibly introduce you both to some of the dragons on the reserve. Both Bill and Charlie stopped talking to their mum, Ron, and Ginny. Percy still isn't talking to anyone and focused on his ministry career. The twins decided since we did a sibling adoption bond I was even more their sister just like you're their brother. They also sent a prank kit for both of us," Hermione reported, handing over a box full of pranks and the like to Harry despite her nervousness at doing so in front of two teachers.

"They are not to be used in my class. Potions is dangerous enough as it is," Severus warned them both and got nods of agreement in return.

"Oh, no need to worry about that Professor. The Headmaster removed them from Potions class to try and keep you apart. He forgot that he was having you teach Defense this year," Luna said airily.

"Then I'll simply have to give them private Potions tutoring. Perhaps a remedial potions club or class. Their removal from the formal class can be the excuse and if we focus on it right he can not force me to give it up in favor of the new teacher taking over," Severus said musingly.

"Am I still banned from Quidditch?" Harry asked carefully.

"Of course you are. You aren't done the potions regime and I will not have you doing even more damage than has already been done to you before you're even healed of the first injuries," Severus shot back. "I am, however, willing to let you fly under supervision on weekends. You've regained enough health for that and only Black's death prevented me from informing you sooner."

Harry sat back in his seat satisfied as Raja quickly moved from McGonagall's lap back to Harry's, purring all the while. Hermione and Luna giggled at how he practically cooed over his little familiar. McGonagall was startled to realize she had never seen Harry so happy and content as he was in that moment. The train ride to the school was mostly uneventful but it did give Severus and Harry time to explain what had been happening to their friends. It also allowed the two Heads of House to sort out the inevitable argument over Harry's resorting and, ultimately, where he would be staying while at Hogwarts. Minerva wasn't exactly pleased at the implications of Severus feeling the need for his son to stay in his quarters for the year but couldn't argue his reasoning either. Neither was she pleased with the stunts Dumbledore had been trying to pull.

By the time they all reached Hogwarts they had agreed on an alliance. Harry would have one more teacher to fully trust that year. He also thought about Voldemort's comments at the bank. While it was clear that they would eventually have to have a long talk the man had also specified that they were now family. He'd also made it abundantly clear to Harry that for the next several years they would be brothers or Uncle and nephew, _not_ lovers. Harry wasn't sure how to express how relieved he was over that. Just like before there was simply to much going on in his life to think about seeing anyone romantically.

Raja's deep purring and slight nip of his finger brought him back to reality in time to get dressed and catch one of the coaches with the rest of his compartment. When they got to the castle neither Gryffindor wanted to sit with the other lions. Harry also wasn't sure what he was supposed to do about getting a re-sort. Severus, seeing his hesitation, quickly came to the rescue.

"If Miss. Granger and Miss. Lovegood are also asking for a re-sort then they need to wait with you just outside the hall where Minerva will bring the First years," Severus explained, eyeing the two girls with interest.

"Harry will need to be sorted first Professor. I'm not certain that we need to be re-sorted but I want to, I want to be in the same house as Harry. I am also uncertain as to what Hermione wants," Luna told him in a dreamy voice.

"Very well. If either of you choose not to undergo a re-sorting we can say that you are out here for moral support or some such. Do not hesitate to speak to Minerva or myself," Severus said agreeably before sweeping up to his place at the head table. Dumbledore's attempt at benevolence aimed at the small group was cut short by a snappish reply from Harry's dad.

"I'm glad you have family now. I'm glad you're really my brother," Hermione said softly as they watched everyone else stream by to take their seats from just outside the great hall.

Harry gave both girls a brilliant smile before returning his attention to a creeling Raja. The little proto-dragon was demanding the food he could smell and his wizard didn't have anything to placate him with. The young man finally gave in and offered his familiar a chocolate frog, despite knowing his friend's carnivorous nature, just as Ron snatched it out of his hand.

"Thanks Potter, been meaning to eat that," Ron said snidely, before promptly opening and devouring the candy in front of them. Raja hissed in outrage before spitting something out of his nose at the redhead. Ron dodged and didn't notice that the small area of stone that had gotten splattered was starting to melt.

"~Raja, he counts as a hatchling still. We'll have to talk to dad about you being able to do that,~" Harry hissed unhappily, the sound of parseltongue quickly scaring away the spectators along with Ron.

"~My poison isn't strong enough to harm something his size yet. At least I didn't spear his eyeball like I wanted to. That was my sweet prey!~" Raja protested grumpily. "~I was just going to blind the nasty red one, maybe make him stay still while I yelled at him.~"

"~Can... can you do that with a bite? And what can your poison do?~" Harry asked hesitantly while they waited for the first years and his two friends watched the conversation with interest.

"~I can spit my poison or use my sharp teeth. My poison makes the prey stay still... usually. It can also eat through things that trap me like those tangley nesting things that you insist on sleeping on,~" Raja said proudly.

"~You're the reason for the holes in my sheets and my bed! I had a lot of trouble hiding that from Dad and Tad,~" Harry exclaimed. From what he'd just been told he _had_ tell his dad about this. What if Raja bit someone? His dad needed to be able to make an antidote in case of accidents.

"~My poison will never harm you, you're my wizard,~" Raja said comfortingly, absently spitting a single ice spear at a passing rat only for it to miss and shatter on the stone just as Professor McGonagall arrived.

"Mr. Potter, please remind your Raja that harming any of the students will get you both punished and possibly taken away from each other," McGonagall observed, eyeing the melting pieces of the shattered mini ice spear.

"He's a true familiar, dad says there's a law and you can't take him away," Harry said in a mix of anger and fear, clutching Raja protectively close.

"Ah? My mistake, I had forgotten for a moment that you had formed a true familiar bond. In that case you would still be held responsible for Raja's actions. Bear in mind that this is a school," McGonagall reminded him with a hidden yet fond smile.

Harry nodded his understanding and relaxed enough to smile shyly at the firsties about to be sorted. She quickly ran through her normal speach to the first years about the houses and what they were to expect while at Hogwarts. Harry and his two schoolmates quickly discovered the ghostly argument was done every year while the teacher checked everything was ready in the great hall. The fact made Hermione and Luna giggle sparking a few of the braver ones to ask a question or two, which were answered just as McGonagall returned.

"Since at least one of you plans to be resorted you will come in behind the first years but you won't wait with them. Instead you will come up to the dias with me and immediately use the hat. That way the Headmaster doesn't have a chance to be... stuffy about this," McGonagall said briskly.

"Why would he?" a small brown haired boy asked in obvious bewilderment.

"I'm not happy with my house. I talked the silly hat that looks into your head and tells you what house is best for you into putting me somewhere I didn't fit well. Luna's house mates don't like her since she's more different then they're used to and have forgotten that magic is different than most things. Learning, while important is not everything and sometimes the books are wrong or the people who wrote the books are wrong. Her housemates have forgotten to be nice so that they can learn truth with knowledge. Hermione... I actually don't know aside from some of our housemates being prats," Harry told them candidly, trying not to prejudice any of them but also explaining their side before the little ones heard any rumors or lies.

"You out argued the sorting hat?" Minerva asked in obvious surprise, setting off a round of laughter and giggles among the eleven year olds.

"You know how you hate when someone that you don't know tries to tell you what to do?" Harry asked them all, gaining a range of head nods and smiles. "Well some people tried to make me do things I didn't like, things that hurt me, so I've stopped listening to them. They don't like that but my Dad and Professor McGonagall and my sisters are helping me. If you think someone is trying to do that to you come see Professor McGonagall or Professor Snape, my dad. They can help you. That doesn't mean you won't get in trouble if you did something wrong but if one of the _grown-ups_ did something wrong they can stop it, sometimes even fix it. Alright?"

The new students all smiled cheerfully, happy to have something they could do if someone tried to bully them. McGonagall watched Harry interact with the new students and remembered how well he had done with his defense group the previous year. From what she could see he had the makings of a fantastic teacher. She knew she'd have to discuss the idea with his father. Both of them believed he would hate the realities of being an Auror completely aside from it being a monumentally safer profession.

The Deputy Headmistress quickly gathered them into a semi-organized group with the three older students at the back. Throwing the doors open using her magic she led them into the great hall. The surprised looks that most of the school gave the two Gryffindors and single Ravenclaw were nothing on Dumbledore's obvious shock. Taking advantage McGonagall quickly summoned the hat and stool before handing it to Harry. Before a word of protest could leave anyone's mouth he had it on his head and was once more talking to the hat.

"H'llo hat," Harry said cheerfully.

"Hello Mr. Potter. I see you discovered one of the reasons why I was hesitant to place you with the lions. Well, since this is your second sorting you get no say in the matter. Lets see how you've changed... hmm... alright... oh, nasty but well deserved... yes, my original thought was right but you needed the tempering the lions gave you. So you shall be in... _**SLYTHERIN!!**_ " The hat shouted out the last word so all could hear and Harry's robes changed from red lined to green, complete with the crest and tie of Slytherin house.

While everyone was still shell shocked Hermione snagged the hat, which quickly declared "Ravenclaw!" Luna, clearly deciding that she didn't need a re-sort now that she had a friend in her house led Hermione over to the other ravens as her robes changed. Harry looked at his dad and then at the snake table before deciding to sit between the first and second years. McGonagall quickly started calling out the names of first years and the sorting had officially begun.


	17. Slytherin House

After the feast McGonagall had to block Dumbledore from talking to Harry as he left with his housemates, heading for the Slytherin common room. Severus had long since decided that while Harry would be in his quarters he would also need to interact with his housemates. As such he would conduct the normal start of the year house meeting as if there was nothing unusual, treating the situation like a normal announcement. Severus and most of the returning Slytherin students were surprised when Harry took the lead and brought everyone to one of the doorways into the common room without a trace of confusion.

"Harry?" Severus asked, eyebrow arched.

"Erm, would you believe a portrait told me?" Harry said with a sheepish flush of embarrassment, realizing his mistake.

"How do you know about this entrance and who else knows?" Severus asked sternly.

"Ron knows, I don't know if he told anyone else. I, we, Hermione brewed us Polyjuice potion in second year and we changed into Crabbe and Goyle over the winter hols. Hermione used the wrong type of hair and got stuck in the hospital wing. Malfoy rescued us from Percy while we were looking for the Slytherin common room. He was the one we wanted to question about being Slytherin's heir and we got him talking but had to leave when the potion started wearing off," Harry admitted, completely red faced.

"That was you!? No wonder Crabbe and Goyle were acting so weird," Draco said with a scowl.

"And why was this not on your essay about second year?" Severus asked archly, ignoring the various snickers and muttering from the rest of his snakes.

"Would you believe I forgot?" Harry offered sheepishly.

"With the kind of preparation needed to even brew that particular potion? Not a chance," Severus told him, a mischievous smile dancing behind his eyes. "You will re-write that essay and possibly the others as well, or you can choose to tell the entire house of your adventures at this school."

"Story night?" a little first year asked in obvious excitement. Harry looked at the little firstie and his heart melted at how cute he was.

"Yeah, alright. I don't mind telling you all but Dad, Professor Snape has to be there," Harry agreed cautiously.

"Why?" one of the older years demanded.

"Some of his adventures would break a full grown wizard. They might make good stories but they are still things that Harry has _lived_ through. He still has nightmares, and rightfully so. As such if you find him thrashing or screaming and can't wake him you are to come and get me immediately," Severus told them sternly. The deadly look in his eye had every member of his house agreeing without hesitation.

"You said I was sleeping in your quarters," Harry said softly, not looking at his father as his heart ached at the probable betrayal.

"That is still the plan but you know how Dumbledore is, he may force you to sleep in the dorm. Its also very possible that he will devise some way to force you back into the lions den. Besides, you might fall asleep while studying in the common room," Severus reminded him softly, giving his son a hug that was quickly returned. Realizing they were all standing outside the common room rather than inside he quickly said the password and led his house back into their territory, their safe haven.

"Right, you all know the drill. First years up front, each year behind them in order," Draco ordered, taking up one of his duties as a Slytherin Prefect and organizing his house to listen to the yearly announcements.

Harry was directed to stand in front of the entryway halfway between Severus himself and the first years who were occasionally looking towards him. They were obviously eager for a story or to hear what else he might say after his speech just outside the great hall. Once everyone was seated or otherwise comfortable Severus formally addressed his house.

"Welcome to Slytherin House. As Minerva, Professor McGonagall no doubt told you your house is to be your family while you are here. Everyone here is your brother or your sister and I will act as one of your parents. This house is known for its ambition and cunning. Somethings that our house is known for are actually attributes of individuals who have passed through our walls rather than of our house its self. We are not backstabbing liars, nor power-mongers, nor in any way evil. Unfortunately that is how some people view this house. As such you must rely on your housemates to have your back. Any disagreements with housemates stay in house, or at least in the common room. Outside the defenses of the common room you act as one, defending each other as if you were defending yourself. If I find you have earned a detention with another teacher or otherwise caught breaking the rules you will have another detention with _me_. I may not punish you in view of the rest of the school or take points but you will be punished if you do something wrong. The rules are in place to protect you and help you to learn. I also expect you all to keep your grades up. If you can not do so come to me, another teacher, or an older student for help," Severus told them all firmly, taking care to meet as many gazes as possible, including his son's.

"Now, I know it is unusual for a student to be re-sorted. Harry's reassignment to Slytherin House was not a spur of the moment decision. Those of you who have previously attended know that the rest of the school will not take this well. You have permission to defend yourselves if you are attacked but be certain to report anything overly suspicious to me or Professor McGonagall. She has agreed to a temporary alliance this year but her first priority will still be her lions. Try to stay in pairs or groups outside of the safety of the common room. As a fellow Slytherin Harry is not to be blamed for the actions of others or attacked. In an attempt to ease the transition and to keep Dumbledore's sticky fingers out of our house Harry will be sharing my quarters. I also blood adopted him when I and Lord Lucius Malfoy retrieved him from where he had somehow disappeared to at the end of last year. Harry? Why don't you explain why you should have been in Slytherin from the first?" Severus suggested with a smirk. Harry glared at his dad for pulling such a stunt but obeyed.

"I, er, I talked the hat out of placing me in Slytherin during my first sorting. I had only heard bad things about our house and Draco was a prat," Harry admitted sheepishly. "I've been hiding in the Lions Den ever since and using Ron as an example of how I was supposed to act. I swear that I didn't go out of my way to prank anyone aside from Draco. I honestly don't see much difference between students in one house over another and Draco kept attacking me so... turnabout."

Raja picked that moment to poke his head out from underneath Harry's, by now, shoulder length hair and the collar of his robes. There were quiet noises of interest, muttering, and a few excited squeals from a couple of first years. Realizing what they were staring at he coaxed his familiar out onto his arm and hand to show the little Proto-dragon off.

"This is Raja. He's a true familiar and a Proto-dragon. He also can spit ice, some sort of poison, and has really sharp teeth. He hasn't tried to fly yet but he also isn't that old. He mostly eats meat but will also chase chocolate frogs and bugs and stuff. Please don't poke at him or let someone else take him. If I'm around I can okay who can pet him but otherwise only I, Luna Lovegood, and Professor Snape should touch him," Harry explained, gaining more confidence as he talked.

"I will need a sample," Severus warned, suddenly eyeing the little dragon-like creature with a combination of worry and intense interest.

"I only found out when Ron stole the Chocolate frog I was going to feed him. Raja spat some of it at him. He said something about it not being strong enough yet to kill Ron but only paralyze him for a bit. I saw it eat through part of the stone it landed on though. I had to ask Raja what it was," Harry told his father, cradling his familiar close.

"So the rascal is the reason for those holes in your bedding," Severus concluded and Harry nodded sheepishly. He nodded and turned back to the rest of the common room. "As you may or may not know Harry is a parseltongue, meaning he can speak the language of snakes. This is considered to be a dark gift but is in actuality no different than being able to talk to Unicorns or Centaurs or even your pets and both sides understanding what was said. We discovered that this can extend to other species which are not specifically snakes but that does not mean it will include every reptile you may come across. When it comes to the Care of Magical Creature class if Harry decides something is dangerous or you need to stay back, follow his example. He has interacted with many dangerous creatures over the years and is friends with Hagrid. This has allowed him to learn how dangerous something might be simply based on looking at it or how cute Hagrid thinks it is."

"Yeah, if Hagrid is cooing over something you need to stay way back and listen closely to what he tells you," Harry said with a grimace of agreement.

"Is it story time yet?" one of the first years asked impatiently, earning a roll of relaxed laughter from the rest of the house.

"Alright... what do you guys want to hear?" Harry asked cluelessly, not sure he wanted to actually tell them about anything dangerous.

"How did you get into the triwizard tournament?" someone, a seventh year, asked.

"I didn't or rather it wasn't my fault that I got entered. You see Barty Crouch Jr. was polyjuiced as Mad-eye that year and put my name from one of my homework into the goblet. I had no idea who he was or that he wasn't Mad-eye Moody until he tried to kill me after I got back with Cedric's body," Harry admitted, looking down at Raja and refusing to meet their eyes.

"Why don't you tell us about your adventures in second year. I want to know how the three of you got some of the ingredients to brew Polyjuice," Severus suggested, his eyes glittering in the firelight.

Harry agreed and went through what all happened that year, including everything that happened in the chamber of secrets. By the time he was done it was well past bed time and everyone had gained a bit of respect for him along with his story telling abilities. Severus sent everyone to bed and reminded the Prefects to tell the first years about everyone's bed times during the next day before leading his son to their quarters. His guest bedroom was quickly turned into Harry's permanent bedroom and they both went to sleep. Severus kept both of their doors open a crack in case Harry had a nightmare but they were both to tired from the events of the day and slept through the night.


	18. Breakfast Distress

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter takes a slightly more serious turn. There will be virtual cookies for those who guess the identity of the idiot(s) correctly!  
> OH! Happy Valentines!  
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The next morning at breakfast Harry discovered that while he wasn't universally liked most of his house were willing to give him a chance. He found the automatic deference, signaled by their repeated glances at his Dad, hilarious. Draco's swaggering, on the other hand, wasn't so pleasant and he resolved to prank the blond until he quit acting like a prat. Harry's first target? Draco's beloved hair.

Unfortunately, Harry got hit with a prank first, a nasty one. Someone had convinced one of the house elves that he needed to eat rotting meat. When it appeared on his plate before he could take anything from one of the serving dishes everyone recoiled. Raja tried to investigate it but Harry, rightfully, wouldn't let his little familiar anywhere near it. The uproarious laughter from Ron and some of the nastier Gryffindors like McLaggen told the snakes exactly who was to blame.

"40 points from Gryffindor and a weeks detention for denying food to an ill classmate!" Severus roared out furious enough to silence the entire great hall.

"He's not ill! He's just a glory hound!" Ron jeered maliciously.

"Considering Professor Snape pulled me from _any_ Quidditch team on the grounds of being to sick to play safely you really might want to re-think your strategy," Harry shot back hotly, banishing the rotten food from his plate and stalking off towards the kitchen.

"Mr. Potter, you will return to your seat at Gryffindor table. You must eat with the rest of the school in the great hall," Dumbledore ordered firmly. Harry whirled around, eyes flashing so strongly that more than one student recoiled, thinking a killing curse had been sent from his wand.

"You are not one of my parents, you are nothing except an old meddling man who keeps getting people _killed_! I am not your puppet and if you can not treat me with the basic respect due a sentient being then the next time you speak to me I will curse you. Not only will I curse you I will curse not to incapacitate or maim but _kill!_ " Harry spat, fury in every line of his body before quickly making his way to the kitchens. He completely ignored anything else said to him by anyone.

"Detention for the year with me! I will see you in my office directly after breakfast," Dumbledore thundered. Harry refused to acknowledge him at all and had no plans to go to any of the detentions he'd just been assigned.

The younger years started to mutter and send scathing glares at the old man who had done exactly what Harry had warned the first years about. Everyone noticed the furious glare that Professor snape was aiming at his employer and no one wanted to be in the Headmaster's shoes. The head of Slytherin house had a target and was clearly on the hunt.

"Albus Dumbledore!" Minerva McGonagall's furious shout shocked most of the school, sending more than one student reeling at the surprising events. "Mr. Potter will not be serving a single detention with you and certainly not for something that, at most, deserves only a loss of points. In point of fact after what I was informed of happening in the last two weeks alone he was well within his rights! Severus, if you choose to withdraw your son and leave your position I will testify in front of the Wizengamot and the goblins that it was due to the Headmaster's actions. I would, however, appreciate it if you refrained from declaring a blood feud until we can find a replacement staff member."

The mutterings of a _blood feud_ and the thought that their stern transfiguration professor thought this and whatever happened before school was grounds for one shocked the purebloods. The muggleborns and many of the halfbloods quickly demanded an explanation from their, clearly, in the know friends and housemates. In less than twenty minutes every single student understood what had been implied. The students were suddenly faced with someone acting like Umbridge but wearing Dumbledore's face and not a one liked the comparison. What sealed it was Draco's next loud comment.

"You'd think he'd know better. At least he's not trying to drown us in pink and kittens like the last Defense professor," Draco said sarcastically in a loud carrying voice.

"Leave Mr. Bumblebee alone, he's got far to many Heliopaths and Wrackspurts fluttering about his brain to realize he's wrong," Luna scolded playfully, her eyes hard and accusing as she met Dumbledore's eyes, making the man flinch.

"Why did you call him... what you did, Luna?" Hermione asked curiously.

"Oh, did you not know that Dumbledore means Bumblebee? Pass the eggs please," Luna said quickly returning to her food. The non-sequitur sent everyone back to their breakfasts. The teachers made a point to hand out the class schedule with a minimal amount of fuss. Severus promised his colleagues that if Harry didn't show up to class that day he would the next.

Harry was blissfully unaware of the bets taking place as to when he and Dumbledore would clash again and if either of them would survive the confrontation. Instead he spent the majority of breakfast explaining to the elves that neither he nor Raja could eat rotten meat, that it would make them sick. It took him nearly forty-five minutes to explain, calm them down, and get his food. Severus, not having a class immeditately after breakfast, found him just climbing out of the kitchens.

"We knew something like this would happen," the potions master warned his son. Harry nodded, head down, thinking he was in trouble for loosing his temper so spectacularly. Severus gently forced his head up and made his son meet his eyes. "You are not in trouble and Professor McGonagall has already gotten your detentions revoked, even Draco defended your position. I have no doubt that there are now bets going around as to what will happen next."

Harry grimaced at the thought but didn't disagree. He'd caught the twins taking bets so many times that it was ridiculous. He also knew that his friends had taken great care in keeping what bets there were on him from his obvious attention. That's when he remembered the prank kit that the twins had sent him via Hermione and a sly look over came his features.

"I don't want to know what put that look on your face. Just, take care with whatever your plans are? I only just found you and I don't want to loose you, neither does your Tad," Severus said, giving him a firm hug that Harry returned.

"I'll be careful," Harry promised, quickly retrieving Raja from the table where he'd just finished devouring a hunk of meat nearly the same size as himself.

"Off with you then," Severus said fondly, handing over Harry's class schedule so that he could go to class.

Harry beamed at him before dashing out and getting his books from their quarters. The school was in some ways delighted to discover that the public scolding Dumbledore received that morning had him hiding in his office for the day. The other teachers, not able to drag the story from their employer, cornered either Severus or Minerva at various times to find out what was going on. For the most part they were outraged on Harry's behalf and more than one of them congratulated Severus or Harry on the adoption.

For the next month things were quiet. Harry went to class, flew on the weekends as his dad watched protectively over him, told stories in the common room until he ran out of things to tell. He generally acted his age for the first time in his life and enjoyed it immensely. The first week of October things changed.

It was Friday and Harry was happily exchanging insults with Draco at the Slytherin table when he went to take a sip of his morning Pumpkin juice. Raja freaked out, knocking the goblet away and constantly herding Harry's hand back away from both food and drink.

"~What's wrong with you?~" Harry hissed in confusion at his familiar. A familiar which had reached three feet long from nose to tail tip at just over a month old.

"~Bad drink! Bad food! No drink! No eat! Go to the bouncy small ones from before, the how-use elves, for clean food,~" Raja hissed adjetatedly.

Harry quickly realized what Raja might mean and paled. Quickly drawing his wand he banished all the food and drink from the table. He thanked every star in the sky that almost no one had actually started eating, despite the chorus of shouts. Severus, seeing the commotion and how pale his son was quickly came over to find out what was going on.

"And what do we have here? What plots are so important that they interrupt my morning cup of coffee?" Severus asked in his most menacing voice, looming up behind a second year. A second year who looked behind him, squeaked at the sight of his Head of House, turned pale, and bolted towards Harry to hide behind him.

"Potter banished the entire breakfast," Draco complained, glaring in puzzlement at his sort of friend. They were in the middle of a prank war but there was a silent agreement not to involve the rest of the house. It wasn't in any way cunning enough to take out their own house much less in public like this.

"Harry?" Severus asked, arched eyebrow and all.

"Raja stopped me from drinking my pumpkin juice or taking any food. He kept saying it was bad and that I needed to go to the house elves for clean food. I didn't know if it was only in the stuff near me or if it was in everything on the table. Raja was too wound up to ask before someone ate something so I banished it all," Harry explained, cradling his familiar close and shivering at the thought of what could have happened.

Severus took a moment to run through what he meant before barking out, "Slytherins up! Against the wall, away from the table and food!"

The entire house scrambled to obey. They had never heard that deadly tone from their Head of House before but they'd heard something like it whenever one of them had been put in danger. Not a single member of the house would try to face down _that_ tone. The moment the students were clear the potions master cast a mass revealing spell aimed at poisons and potions of all kinds. Everything lit up one of several colors, green, yellow, orange, red, purple, or blue.

"Green is clean, yellow is a minor potion not worth bothering over like a prank, red is poison, orange or purple is a mixed poison-potion, blue is a stronger potion like a love potion or a loyalty potion," a seventh year recited, completely pale at what Harry had protected them from.

The Slytherins noticed that there was only one purely yellow item, Draco's morning sweet strawberry pastries. All of the plates and cutlery were green as were half the goblets. The other half were bright glaring red or purple. The small bowl that would have held Raja's serving was brilliant blue in one half and neon orange for the other half. It was as if the poison had only been scattered over half of his food bowl before being hastily tucked away. Someone wanted a great many of the Slytherin students dead, or at least very sick.

"They must have spread it out to get whoever they were after since we change seats all the time," Harry said feeling sick. "I know the prank stuff was probably a student but who would be sick enough to use poison on students?"

"Go back to the dormitory. Harry, go with them and call your house elf friends for clean food. You are all to stay inside the common room and dormitory until this is sorted," Severus said, his voice deadly. "Draco you have permission to ask Dobby to take a letter to your father or find some other way of doing so, provided none of you leave the safety of Slytherin House."

"If something gets into the dorm I'll take them down to the chamber. You can ask Voldemort where it is if it comes to that," Harry said firmly as he and the prefects quickly ushered Slytherin House back into their own territory.

"Severus?" Minerva asked having come up next to him with no sign of Dumbledore even showing for breakfast.

"Someone poisoned most of the food meant for my snakes," Severus informed her, struggling not to turn his fury on his long time friend. He quickly took samples while McGonagall transfigured sample vials for him to store them in for later testing.

The other teachers approached, having sent the other students off to their own dorms. He didn't bother explaining again instead he simply used the revealing charm again, making sure they heard the incantation. The genuinely shocked sounds told his suspicious spy mind that it wasn't done by any of them.

"Depending on what I find I will keep you informed, Minerva. Lucius may order the school shut down until a culprit is found or at least order the school and students relocated," Severus told them in a monotone voice. His fury was forcing him to use every Occlumency trick he knew to keep it under control.

"I'll have the older years check all food items that are delivered to the students for the time being," Minerva murmured, just as bothered by the incident as the potions master.

Severus' mark flared, telling him that Voldemort had picked up the situation from his bond with Harry. The shear burning intensity told him that the man was not pleased and wanted answers. He pressed his hand to the mark and pulsed it three times, the wait signal that they had been forced to develop over his years of spying. Wasting no more time Severus took the samples and made his way to his private lab before immediately starting the grueling testing on the contaminated food stuffs.

It took him several hours but he managed to determine there wasn't enough poison in any of it to do more than make everyone sick. Unless someone had an allergy it would merely make his house ill and defenseless, _not_ kill them. It would have taken devouring two whole contaminated serving platters to make anyone ill enough to be dangerous. However, the very presence of the poison was disturbing in and of its self. Especially since it could have been brewed by anyone who'd passed their third year potions class.

While he worked the other Heads of House made a search of the dormitories, finding many banned items along with a few dangerous projects but no poison. If it had been anyone but a Slytherin student or staff member they had covered their tracks well. The only thing of interest was that Ron got busted for openly harassing Neville, trying to get him to turn on Harry. To say that the staff wasn't pleased would be an understatement. Through all of this Dumbledore remained in his office and rooms, ostensibly completely unaware of occurring events.


	19. Snake Pit

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Right, um... I don't know how to put this but hold on tight?  
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Harry wasn't happy about being stuck in the Slytherin common room/dorms but could easily see where his Dad was coming from. It helped that he'd gotten to know the Slytherins a bit more since being re-sorted and that most of the house loved his stories. The fact that they were true and that many of his fellow Slytherins remembered the events of those years helped tremendously. Harry had obeyed his father's instructions and called Dobby once everyone was in the common room.

It took some explaining but the little elf had finally understood what had happened. To say he was appalled was an understatement, in fact Harry could honestly say that the murderous glint in Dobby's eye was more than a little scary. With a promise of a clean breakfast for everyone and a deadly tone about _talking_ with the other elves that sent a shiver of unease down Harry's spine, the free elf popped away.

"That was Dobby?" Draco squeaked, causing Harry to look up and notice that most of the house had been watching his interactions with the house elf.

"Yeah, he's the reason for that killer bludger in second year and a few other things," Harry said with a grimace at the memory.

"He's changed," Draco said, still staring at the spot where the elf popped out of the room.

"Your dad let slip that I was supposed to accept him as my elf when he sent Dobby to protect me in second year. When he found out I didn't know how he made sure to explain how but I don't know how to bring it up with him," Harry admitted sheepishly.

"You're still really behind in your heir training," Draco pointed out thoughtfully. "Are you ever going to tell me why Uncle Sev adopted you?"

"I'd really rather not," Harry said a bit sharply. Draco lifted a hand in a soothing motion and summoned a chocolate frog before offering it as a peace offering. Harry accepted than froze, staring down at the candy as a terrible thought entered his mind.

"Oh, shit," Harry whispered before looking up sharply at his once rival. "We need to check every speck of food or drink in the dorms. If they got to the stuff in the great hall, yeah that's easier, but what if they got in here to?"

"Shit!" Draco cursed before turning to the rest of the house and upper years. "Alright people! We have a possible problem. I want every speck of food or drink collected to be checked in case our dorms were compromised. I don't care what it is or how it got here, if it's edible or drinkable it needs to be checked. All potions are to be collected as well until Professor Snape can check them. If you're not checking the food and drink you get to teach the younger years how to do the revealing spell and what all the colors mean. Remember, any hint of red in the color means there's some sort of poison. Making red, orange, and purple things that need to be quarantined. Blue and Purple will also need to be quarantined and checked for whatever the strong potion is. Green is clean and yellow is probably a prank but no need to take chances. If its not green when you use the spell, as of this moment it gets set aside for testing. Because we can't afford to be lax or relax until this is over any alcohol that's found is to be destroyed via fire, preferably in the common room fireplace. I will personally replace any alcohol at a later time from the Malfoy family wine cellar or buy the replacement of your choice."

The deadliness of his tone and the fact he was promising reparations for the to-be-destroyed alcohol told them how serious he was. The firm nods from the Seventh and Sixth years told him they wouldn't just be going through their own dorms but everyone else's as well. A nod from Draco dismissed everyone to go scrambling for their hiding places and trunks, obeying the order that everything had to be checked.

Draco left Harry in the common room with Raja who sniffed at the candy but didn't throw a fit like he had done at breakfast. Harry figured that meant it was alright but didn't want to take any chances. Instead he set up an area that could contain the collected food and drink using several study tables. One study table was for the contaminated items, one was for the things to be checked, and one was for the cleared stuff. The tables were quickly filled and Harry had to transfigure another two out of some spare firewood for the potions and the cleared items.

Watching the brilliant flares at the fireplace of various bits of burning alcohol kept most of the younger years safely occupied. Meanwhile, the upper years cleaned out every bit of food or drink and grimly started checking it. By the time they were done they had discovered more than half had some sort of potion in it. Thankfully, nothing showed as poisoned.

Severus, having finished his testing at about the same time as the older Slytherins, stepped into the common room. As he did something in the air snapped. Harry, feeling it, lunged for his father in an attempt to somehow knock him out of the way. Raja shrieked in warning as he took flight towards the potions master. The magic slammed into the man, forcing a quiet gasp out of him as he fell to his knees in the entrance way a split second before Harry barreled into him. The silence in the room was deafening.

"Harry," Severus whispered, attempting to catch his breath and cradling his son tightly against him as Raja landed next to them.

"What was that?" Harry asked in a muffled voice, shivering slightly in fright at possibly loosing his dad.

"Hogwarts has rejected the Headmaster and removed him from control of the wards. What you felt, what we both felt was the transfer of those wards. I hold them now, along with control of the house elves," Severus explained to his clearly frightened son.

"Does that make you Headmaster now?" Draco asked with glittering eyes.

"Unfortunately not. Hogwarts can make her preference known and lock anyone but her choice out of the Headmaster's suite and office but the Board of Governors has to approve the choice. Of course if the Board picks someone when Hogwarts makes it clear that she is giving her favor to another it has been known for the school defenses to activate against the Board's choice. Occasionally Board and school compromise when the initial choice lacks any interest in being Headmaster. Generally, the few times the school expresses a preference it is accepted as a given. This is partly to keep the school from killing anyone who isn't actually attacking the school and its residents," Severus explained apologetically. "Dumbledore has until the end of the school year before the school or the Governors can do anything about his official position. Unless he openly attacks a student or is clearly responsible for harm to the student body, in which case he can be removed immediately. There is no evidence that he was involved in this despite his clear ability to prevent it with a little forethought. The ward transfer is effectively a vote of no confidence by the school. If he can get the school to transfer the wards back into his care by the end of the year then he keeps the Headmastership. If not, then the defenses turn on him and will act immediately to kill not just chase him from the grounds as they would with someone else."

"How do you know?" Harry asked curiously, finally raising his head from his father's chest to look him in the eye.

"Every Head of House has to learn these things and demonstrate that knowledge before the school will recognize them as a Head of House. We get partial control of the wards and can act as emergency stand-ins if something happens to the Headmaster and his Deputy. The school evaluates the situation and chooses which of us is the best person to take over. This is also one of the reasons why the Deputy Headmistress is not barred from also being a Head of House," Severus told them all. "We are the first pick until a new Headmaster is selected or when one is removed or leaves. After us in consideration are the rest of the staff, then anyone who is over seventeen and has lived at the school for more than six months. In an extreme case the castle will reach out to someone who simply attended for at least two years."

"Huh, so that's why Dumbledore did his best to put his sycophants as House Heads," Draco said thoughtfully, earning an exasperated look of amusement from his godfather.

"Draco did you send a message to your father via house elf?" Severus asked, choosing to change the subject. Draco blushed in embarrassment and shook his head no.

"We decided to check all the snacks and stuff we already had in case someone got into the dorms," Harry explained, finally relaxing enough to let the two of them sit up. Raja purred in their ears, climbing up to Harry's shoulder, as they sat on the floor in front of the entrance to the common room.

"Good thinking. I presume the table full of potions is for me to check for tampering?" Severus asked and Harry nodded still refusing to get out of his father's lap. Recognizing the clingyness for what it was he hugged Harry close and whispered in his ear. "It's alright son. I'm not going anywhere. I'll bunk here with you and the others for the moment. We'll floo call Lucius, assure the Dark Lord that you are fine, and hopefully get this sorted out."

"Okay," Harry said in a small voice, reluctantly letting his father up off the cold stone floor. 

Finally noticing the curious looks of his housemates Harry pulled on his "Golden Boy" mask and smiled at them all reassuringly. Acting like nothing had happened or could be in any way wrong he stepped back from his father. He pretended to focus on the tables of contaminated and checked food stuffs as he absently pet Raja. Raja made a warbling cooing sound and tried to crane around and look at Harry's face only to squawk and fall from his perch, catching himself with his wings and his wizard's quick hands.

"Be more careful Raja," Harry scolded quietly, successfully distracted by his familiar as his father quickly examined the gathered food and potions.

It didn't take the potions master long to examine everything and what he found made him furious. The various prank and personal grooming potions were expected as were some of the medical potions. It was the control, loyalty, and mind altering potions that had his dander up. The love potions were still in their vials so he only had to have a harsh discussion with their owners and confiscate or destroy them. The contraceptives were annoying but something he'd prefer was on hand rather than not. The compulsion and loyalty potions, the ones that could destroy his students though had him in a right fury.

As a master he could tell who another brewer was if he was familiar with their style and personality. Every single potion was either stolen from his own stores, purchased in one of the Alleys, or brewed by a resident of Hogwarts. Of the various compulsion potions most were targeted at his son. The idea that someone was purposefully trying to cause his son problems and going to such lengths to accomplish that burned like acid in his chest. Only the soothing sensation of the school wards in the back of his mind allowed him to keep his temper. The wards pulsed saying _it's alright, you caught it in time, the students are safe, your son is safe_ , tasting of the cool lap of gentle water against his mind.

"Harry come here," Severus ordered quietly, making sure to take a step back from the gathered food stuffs and potions. A swipe of his wand had them sorting themselves into two piles, things that were supposed to be there and things that weren't. Harry was by his side in a flash, looking at him expectantly.

"Harry, I need you to destroy this pile while I firecall Lucius and the Seventh years return the rest. Draco, go write that letter to your father. I'll pass it through the fire when I talk to him if you're quick about it," Severus ordered, taking charge now that the immediate threats had been checked and taken care of. He had made sure to keep the love potions in the destroy pile.

Harry took on a look of determination and quickly agreed, glaring at the large tainted pile of potions and things. What quickly followed was organized chaos, during which Severus very pointedly sealed them all into the Slytherin common room. The grim nods that the older students gave him told him they were just as bothered by these latest events as he was. To say that Lucius and Voldemort were not happy would be a serious understatement. The call ended with a promise from Lucius that he and the other governors would be there in three hours or less. The entire Slytherin house settled down to wait and talked Harry into another story session while they waited.


	20. Lucius to the Rescue

When Lucius arrived at the school, the other governors trailing behind him, he was in a right fury. Not only had a great many _children_ been put at risk by some bloody idiot but he'd had to be the one to convince the Dark Lord that he couldn't come. The crucio was exceptionally painful but worth it to have someone with that kind of power as an emergency back up if things went bad. The Malfoy lord just knew that once Harry was routinely exposed to the Dark faction he'd find a way to wrap the rest of them around his little finger. Just like the little adorable brat had managed with the Dark Lord, his own family, and Severus himself, completely aside from managing to do the same with a pack of _Velociraptors_. Dr. Grant had explained that the imp had managed it in under _20 minutes_. It made him wonder what else the young man was capable of.

The gates of the school opened obediently for the group of governors as they approached. Lucius could almost swear that they opened a bit faster than usual. He mentally and gleefully shrugged it off as Dumbledore no longer being in control of the wards. Oh how he despised how much power that old goat had before the summer and still had if the talk on the streets had any truth to it.

The old fool was going to find out exactly how unpleasant he could be and if that didn't work? Well, he could always explain to Narcissa what happened. The thought of the reaction his wife had when he'd informed her there was a problem at the school had a shiver running down his spine. His wife's face and obvious need to defend not only Draco but Harry and Severus as well had been terrifying. She was a loving wife and mother but she was also still a Black. There were reasons why you never crossed a Black, especially a _female_ Black.

They didn't bother waiting for the carriages, this was a surprise arrival after all. The fact that they were _walking_ told the other governors that he really hadn't dragged them all there for no reason, despite his lack of explanation. The fact that they had to put in some _effort_ rather than letting him talk them into the various decisions was... more than a little disconcerting to his fellows. It was Lady Longbottom that finally broke the silence in favor of answers.

"Lucius, what exactly are we doing here?" Augusta demanded in exasperation. "I realize that Dumbledore isn't exactly in the best flavor but..."

"But nothing. I received a floo call from the Slytherin common room. Someone tried to poison or potion the entire Slytherin house at breakfast," Lucius informed them, having no compunction with interrupting the Lady regent. "Potions Master Severus Snape took the time to collect samples and test everything found tainted after sending his snakes back to the common room as a safety precaution. His recently adopted son, Harry Potter, had been re-sorted into Slytherin and realized that the snacks and such in the dorms might have been compromised. They arranged to collect everything and test it. More than half turned out to be tainted in some way. Severus confirmed their findings before ordering some of the older students to destroy it while he contacted me. I have no idea if the other houses were affected but he deemed it important enough that he sealed the common room, with him inside."

"Neville?" Augusta asked quickly, barely processing what she'd been told before her mind jumped to her grandson.

"I only have information on the Slytherin students... The wards reverted to Severus when he first entered the common room after the incident," Lucius informed them all grimly just as they came upon the main doors to the castle. Hearing about the wards had all of the governors looking grim and more than one was clearly worried. Lucius noted that most of the worried ones had some relative or other attending said school as they stepped into the empty entry hall.

"I will check the Gryffindor dorms," Madam Longbottom said decidedly.

"I will check the Hufflepuff dorms," Madam Bones said with narrowed eyes and flaring nostrils.

"I will take Ravenclaw if you will ensure the continued safety of Slytherin," Lord Parkinson offered. Lucius graciously, yet grimly, nodded his agreement.

"Then the rest of us will find the Headmaster and see about what has happened and exactly why he seems to have done nothing to prevent it," Lord Greengrass said with a growl that was mirrored by his fellow governors. They split into five groups, Lucius went alone since they already had confirmation from the Slytherin dorms but two governors each went to the other dorms with the remaining heading for the Headmaster's office. They obviously considered five governors to be enough for confronting Dumbledore, at least at first.

Lucius knew it wouldn't be enough to force him to actually _do_ anything at wand point but it might be enough to get a few answers. He was more concerned over his son, Severus, and Harry any way. Both he and Voldemort had agreed that they had to be Lucius' priority upon arrival, everyone else had to be secondary. Voldemort had been pissed that he couldn't come along, shifting to very grumpy but resigned after cursing Lucius. The blond was just thankful the other man's sanity had returned making the use(ie. overuse) of crucio a fairly rare event. His use of the spell now was much closer to a variation on a full body stinging hex rather than boiling the person alive in acid while slicing them to very tiny ribbons. That wasn't to say that the Dark Lord couldn't or wouldn't use the previous power level of the spell. He was just far less likely to use that level unless you majorly screwed up on top of getting a bunch of people killed.

Coming upon the primary entrance to the Slytherin dorms Lucius quickly used an old message spell that Severus had developed at some point. Severus, receiving the message, quickly unsealed the common room and poked his head out.

"What was the last thing that transpired between us of dangerous import?" Severus asked suspiciously. Lucius, as one of the governors, had the authority to open it himself rather than getting someone else to do it.

"Narcissa demanded that you agree to come with your son to a family dinner. Something which you have yet to do and only this disaster has kept the two of us from facing consequences for it. She informed me just yesterday that she would also be inviting our lord and requiring Draco's attendance as well. There was also a gleam in her eye so she may insist on a shopping expedition or a party or some such," Lucius told him with a very obvious shiver at the antics of his wife. Severus muttered something about insane Black women and let his friend inside, quickly re-sealing it behind them.

"You made me open the common room," Severus said flatly once they were positioned in front of the fireplace with most of the house surrounding them. Draco and Harry had claimed spots at their feet and were watching Raja play with a bit of string rather like a cat. They were also playing strict attention to their father's discussion.

"Do you know how much magic it takes to forcibly unseal a dorm even with my authorization as governor?" Lucius shot back with a derisive snort. "In any case five of the governors went to dig him out of his hole while the rest of us split up to check the students. I came down alone since we'd already had word from you."

"I still don't know how you managed to become a governor again," Severus snorted in a combination of amusement and 'its about time' disgust.

"That, actually, had more to do with your son than anything else. Helping the three of you onto English soil showed that I wasn't simply trying to get him killed at the cost of everything and anything. They still made me take a magical oath not to curse anyone if their was another argument over school policies and politics but I snuck in a line about simply being required to try at least three separate legal avenues first. They weren't happy but conceded on the grounds that next time I show proof of threat or detriment to either the general public or the school and its students. The old man had used the fact that most of the petrifaction victims were muggleborns, thus having no real representation, as an excuse. He also purposefully failed to inform the parents, failed to inform us of the true numbers of affected students, and kept passing it off as a spell gone wrong," Lucius explained with obvious frustration. "Yes, I was angry about Dobby but I explained that you. I honestly thought he or another teacher would have detected the object and taken proper steps."

"If it had appeared in Slytherin I certainly would have detected it but I can't answer for the other houses. Did you know that old fool knew the Dark Lord was in the school the whole of Harry and Draco's first year? It was the entire point of keeping that bloody artifact here, to _test_ my son," Severus reminded his friend, not at all bothered by the rest of the house hanging on their every word. Harry had already told them the stories about those events any way.

"McGonagall barely talks to us and doesn't check on us like Dad does," Harry offered. "I've caught her talking to Dumbledore and then not knowing about talking to him, like she's forgotten or something. Luna says that the Ravenclaws are expected to have certain grades but there isn't really social help since she's bullied all the time. I've had to help her find her shoes at least twice this year but at least with Hermione in the same house it isn't as bad as last year. I don't think they've considered bobby trapping her things yet. If it keeps happening I'll have to suggest it and remind Hermione about the prank kit that the twins gave her."

"And Hufflepuff?" Lucius asked curiously.

"No idea really. I'm not close with anyone in that house, most of them still hate me for killing Cedric. You were there, I barely managed to stand my ground and get away with his body. It wasn't even Voldy who killed him, it was bloody Wormtail, the traitor," Harry reminded him, frustration obvious enough to earn a soothing croon from Raja and a pounce on his hand to distract the young wizard.

"Yes, I was and its thanks to you that he's not insane and bent on killing everyone any more," Lucius agreed with a deep chuckle, trusting to the in house secret policy to keep the rumors from getting to bad.

"Father, I promised that we would replace the alcohol to get it destroyed and everything else checked when Harry realized that the stuff in the dorms might have been tampered with," Draco said softly, wishing he could feel free to interrupt like Harry did even if the interruption had been important. Lucius nodded his agreement and mentally marked that he had to get Slytherin house replacement sweets and the like with alcohol for some of the upper years.

"Did you bother keeping track of who had what?" Severus asked with interest.

"Yes, but I went for safety over accuracy. We should have probably been doing a check once in a while any way with how the rest of the school hates us. It didn't get any easier when we stole the golden boy but we've been keeping to pairs or better like you said. Weasel and Weaselett have been a major problem, arranging for ambushes and the like while demanding we release Potter. Its why we've lost so many points. They might start it but _we_ finish it," Draco said smugly. "I've been pushing those two so they don't try to target some of the younger years, get them focused on me and the other upper years."

"They haven't caught me alone yet but it won't be too long before they manage," Harry agreed sadly. Raja decided it was time to put in his two knuts worth and started hissing.

"~They've tried and almost got you more than you think. I stopped them. I've also caught them talking about trying to bind you or forcibly mate you to the small red female. They also talk about putting a leash on you and making you watch them kill your Dad,~" Raja hissed in warning. Harry paled, immediately worrying most of the house.

"Son?" Severus asked softly, almost gently.

"Raja says that he's stopped them a couple of times without me noticing and that they want to bind me or 'forcibly mate' me to Ginny. He also said they talked about putting me on a leash and then making me watch as they kill you," Harry said in a whisper barely loud enough to be heard by those nearby. Lucius scowled, biting back a curse as he pressed Draco more firmly against his leg. Severus simply jerked Harry up and into his lap, clutching him just a touch to tight in a mix of fear and anger. Harry returned the grip, holding his father hard enough that they both knew he'd leave bruises, neither of them cared.

"This must have been the last straw for the school to change the wards to you. From Harry's description McGonagall may be suffering under multiple memory charms. Charms which you are naturally immune or resistant to as a Master Occlumens. If he has been using memory charms that freely it is likely that you are the only unaffected staff member. That alone would make you the only suitable staff member to receive the wards. Can you think of anything that might have prevented the school from making her displeasure known before now? I could be considered at fault for the most recent chamber mess, the tournament and Black could be considered a Ministry debacle along with Umbridge last year..." Lucius said thoughtfully, refusing to let go of his son, despite the more discrete manner over the one Severus had chosen.

"He had us renew something in the wards keyed to him once every few years until Harry arrived then it became yearly. Being in control of the wards he could have altered them, added to them, or removed part of them on a whim. He hasn't been asking for the bi-monthly contraceptive potions that are supposed to go into everyone's morning drink since Harry was entered into the tournament. If they're being used then I don't know who he's gotten to brew them. If he's not using them at all it would be a miracle that no one's gotten pregnant," Severus reviewed, his grip easing slightly and allowing Harry to get more comfortable in his lap instead of being half draped over it and half sliding off of him. Raja gave a hissy chuckle from the floor and curled up against Severus' ankle, ignoring Harry's light glare in favor of a nap. "He's also been overly focused on Harry ever since his arrival. By the way I owe you one for the Prince Lordship. Dumbledore had hidden it from me and was stealing from both my son and I. We set the goblins on it."

"That doesn't leave Slytherin house!" Draco called out only to receive various sounds of acknowledgement from the others. The purebloods and informed halfbloods making their happiness over the information clear to one and all.

"Then he might have held the wards simply by locking them to his signature, which would delay or deny the transfer if he put enough power into the lock," Lucius said with a frown. "Hogwarts is powerful but essential control comes with control of the wards. Has this suspicious renewal occurred this year? Or last year?"

"No, it hasn't been renewed. First it was because of that pink toad, whom I blame you for, then it was... oh, I see. Yes, that would definitely have put a wrinkle in his plan," Severus said thoughtfully, an evil grin spreading across his face.

"His forcible hold on the wards must have been weakened enough for the castle to rip control away from the old goat and reassign it more appropriately," Lucius said with and equally evil grin.

"I'm almost tempted to set Remus on him but that would get the wolf in trouble and we've only just gotten him more stable after Black's death. They were mates and as he counts Alan and I as the alpha pair of our small pack it took sometime to bring him around. Alan wasn't happy when he found out how much damage Lupin has been doing to himself during the full moon and has him under house arrest until he's back up to a healthy weight. Another month and he might be allowed to live in the house that Black gave him. Alan really took to the idea of properly establishing his authority with the man's wolf when he realized that the wolf was more entwined with Lupin than the daft man was willing to admit. If he had solely been relying on the potion or fighting his wolf with all he had he would have been dead before Harry's first birthday. I'm working on a better version of the potion but my research is being disrupted by daft Headmasters and curious sons. Not that I'm complaining about Harry since he's actually taken an interest in potions. Or rather because he no longer has physical damage preventing him from brewing properly and I no longer have to be a bastard about it. It was the bastard part that really bothered both of us," Severus explained conversationally, not bothered in the least by the weight of his son and comforted by Harry's nearness.

"Narcissa knows you've taken on Lupin but wasn't aware that you'd found a partner for yourself," Lucius said with a smirk. "Even if he is a muggle she will be very pleased and probably insist on all four of you coming to that family dinner."

"I doubt she'll be able to intimidate him since he repeatedly faced down Velociraptors and won the confrontations, earning the right to adopt Harry in the process," Severus said with a snort at his friend's scheming. "They can speak parseltongue and called him treasured speaker, yes he told me, so my son obviously ranks high in their hierarchy."

Harry muttered something unintelligible but remained in his father's lap, basking in the simple comfort and caring. He wasn't overly concerned that Voldemort had told his father what the raptors had called him at the bank but he still hated the various titles he supposedly had. For one the wizarding public, or at least the press, really needed to learn to come up with better names. He hadn't accepted his Lordships yet since they were still under investigation and the entire thing had been frozen by the goblins. Harry also wasn't that keen to take up responsibilities without knowing specifically what they were. Severus, Alan, and Voldemort had all approved that decision and they had spoken with the goblins about it. To say that the goblins had been impressed that the heir had actually asked for a test before he could take up his responsibilities was an understatement.

Skeeter had been caught by the Goblins trying to sneak in to the will reading via Dumbledore's invite and managed to get away from them as a beetle. The problem was that she ran into the visiting Velociraptors and was snapped up, quite literally, as a tasty snack. Said snack promptly made the raptor sick and was torn apart by the small group's aggressive indignation.

Severus had been sent an owl about the matter as courtesy due to the legal contract they had with the woman. He had wisely decided not to tell Harry about it beyond informing him that the reporter had crossed the wrong person and died as a result. Harry hadn't pushed but he also hadn't been outright happy about it. They had later found plans on how to catch her in a bobby trap and humiliate her in front of Diagon Alley in the trash and decided that it would be up to Harry to bring it up. He never did and his parents let it be.

In the coming hours after Lucius' arrival in the Slytherin common room it was discovered that every single house was affected by the scattering of potions but only Slytherin house had the low level _poisons_ that would slowly kill some of its members after they had graduated. Thankfully, whoever had done it wasn't aware of a simple fact of the human body. Low level(ie. nonlethal) exposure to most poisons actually helps the body to adapt to the poison and increases poison resistance overall. Thus the affected Slytherins had gained something despite the dangers of a slow poisoning.

To say that the governors and staff were furious was an understatement. The discovery, however, _did_ positively prove the existence of memory charms via the off reactions of the staff. Dumbledore proved to be unaware of the poison, knowing how children shared food and such, and managed to prove it. The governors had actually discovered him locked in his own office by both a prank and the school. Which was why he hadn't been at breakfast when the discovery was made. Everyone grumbled over it but no one could legally prove anything except that the wards and Hogwarts had picked someone new as Headmaster. Without that proof they couldn't immediately remove him from the post of Headmaster, despite the change in who controlled the wards. With this new information Severus, at the urging of the governors, summoned the house elves.

All 150 of the elves arrived without fanfare in front of Severus and Harry in the great hall. Dobby was standing in front of all of them with a collapsed elf at his side, glaring at every single one of them. None of them were willing to meet his eyes even as they responded to Severus' summons.

"Dobby?" Severus asked with a raised eyebrow.

"I is new Head elf. Theys being very naughty and listening to stupid things," Dobby said with a last scowl sent towards his fellow elves before turning to Severus and bowing low. "Whats youse being needing Master Harry's Severus?"

"I thought I told you to bond with Harry Potter?" Lucius asked mildly.

"Master Harry Potter Sir not offer," Dobby said sadly as he resumed standing.

"I, er, do you want to be my elf?" Harry asked carefully, not sure he should even be asking right now. Dobby beamed at him and nodded his head, floppy ears snapping in the wind. He quickly scrambled over to Harry and knelt, hands upraised, palm up. Harry ignored the various protests from uninformed muggleborns and took Dobby's hands. "Do you swear to serve me and my family faithfully? To keep our secrets and obey our commands? To ensure our happiness and safety for so long as you are bound to us?"

"YES!" Dobby said excitedly, not moving a muscle as he waited for the next part of the bonding.

"I, in turn, swear to be your ground and gate, to be an honorable master, to uphold the honor you bring to me and my house. That you may be recognized as a part of my household I will provide you a mark of your station. So mote it be," Harry said solemnly. There was a flash of magic and Dobby was immediately clothed in a fresh, clean, red towel baring the crests of the houses of Potter, Black, Gryffindor, Peverell, and Prince over where a human heart would be in a neat house shape. The Grant and Snape family lines didn't have a crest so they were missing.

"So, now that my son has accepted Dobby as his personal house elf, who is the Head elf?" Severus asked with a sarcastic drawl. The elves all looked very down, there was a huge difference between being bonded to a family and working a Hogwarts. A lucky elf would be allowed to approach a student at graduation to bond with or someone would petition Hogwarts for an elf.

"I's can still be heads elf sir. Master Harry Potter Sir is Gryffindor Heir," Dobby said respectfully, gesturing to his new uniform.

"What?" Harry asked in surprise. Raja, sitting on his shoulder, just laughed hard enough that he vibrated right off his human's shoulder only to be caught by quick hands. An equally quick glance from Severus at Dobby's new attire confirmed it for the Potions Master.

"Alright, report," Severus conceded reluctantly.

"Theys not checking new elf who disappears. I's scolded thems but needs order not let food messed with. Libby's being young and not knowing that bad meat _never_ be served at table. Bad meats bes for scary things or Hagrid pets things. Scary things not eats at tables," Dobby informed him with a fierce glare at his fellow elves.

"You are never to add something to the food of any students or staff unless I, as both potions master and staff member, specifically tell you to do so. Further if I refuse to explain to you, truthfully, what it is then you are still to refuse to add it to anything. Instead you are to inform the staff of the attempt so that I can be checked for controlling potions and spells. Have I made myself clear?" Severus demanded with his best evil bastard glare. A few of them squeaked in obvious fright but all of them quickly agreed. He quickly ordered them all back to work and an extremely disgruntled school resumed their normal schedule. Aside from the pranks on Dumbledore, which the rest of the staff ignored, there was nothing further any of them could do. Life went on as normal until winter break.


	21. Plans Within Plans

Deep inside the ministry a particular red-haired Unspeakable cursed at his assigned elf and threatened to kill it. The poor creature was cowering in the corner of his office, having only followed orders. It wasn't entirely unusual for the elf to have been used for an attempted assassination, he was assigned to the Department of Mysteries after all. It was, however, less common for it to be attacked for failing to accomplish the mission, even with multiple failed attempts. As a cruico just barely missed the elf, slamming into the stone next to his head the elf decided he'd had enough.

"Youse a bad wizard!" the elf cried before purposefully breaking the bond. Using the last of his rapidly draining power to arrive at Hogwarts, the elven safe haven and unemployment office, where he collapsed.

Dobby found him within moments but the other elf had already lost too much magic from ripping its self free of the bond. The elf was dead before he could say a word but left behind its official uniform and the recognition of the other elves from when he had tainted the food back in October. Dobby quickly reported the occurrence to Professor Snape as the school recognized pending Headmaster, completely ignoring the thought of going to Dumbledore.

Despite the upset of the dying elf's arrival Hogwarts was magnificently decked out for the holidays. Dumbledore had wrangled some sort of political ball to be held at the school over the holidays and required the entire upper year student population to attend. Severus had tried to get it canceled or at least to make it optional but failed. Instead he was forced to contact Lucius about his worry over the purity of the food stuffs and to see if Alan could be allowed to spend Christmas with them at Hogwarts.

Hogwarts herself, on the other hand, wasn't as displeased by the mandatory political ball as her current potions master and next Headmaster. No, instead the beautiful, intelligent, powerful building that she was saw it as a perfect opportunity to remind certain people. Remind them why it wasn't a good idea to mess with her magics or the children in her charge. To top it off she thought it would be a wonderful way of letting Harry's pack/family visit his school. Maybe she could even get the "Rexy" that her potions master's mate was occasionally muttering about feeding the old fool to for a visit. Of course most everyone had forgotten that her magic and the grounds originally included Hogsmeade and the forbidden forest. She never did figure out why they had reduced the wards so that it didn't cover everything properly.

The castle musingly shifted around certain rooms and things to accommodate her planned additional guests during the winter break. As she did so a shiver went down the spines of the staff. Both Severus Snape and Filius Flitwick exchanged a resigned yet wary glance before eyeing the walls of the old building with something bordering on fear. The silent mischievous cackle of the school's magic was no longer a happy, reassuring, protective hum, instead it was echoing the prank to come.

A pulse of magic echoed from the school just as winter break began. A pulse heard by every dragon and dinosaur on the planet that was instinctively understood and responded to. Norberta screamed a challenge and broke free from her handlers, followed quickly by the four dragons from the tournament with their barely year old offspring riding on their backs. Rexy and the Raptors quickly made their way to the old communication stone on the island to peacefully contact the goblins for a portkey. The magical pulse even caressed the train as it pulled away with those lower year students going home, sending magical ice patterns dancing along the window panes as it passed. There were going to be unexpected visitors for Christmas and the castle couldn't wait to introduce everyone.

The first day of Winter Break Dumbledore had required everyone that remained at the school to attend a late breakfast and eat in the great hall together. Just as everyone was finishing up and Dumbledore stood to make an announcement, twinkling eyes and all, there was a commotion. Before anyone could move the room was washed in magic from the very stones of the school. The wave of cleansing magic had a double purpose. First it cleared all potions(ie. pranks mostly slipped in _after_ being served) and such from the foods and second it removed any and all perception affecting magics. Perception affecting magics like glamours, invisibility spells, and _notice-me-not_ spells. Just like the overpowered notice-me-not spell that Dumbledore had been keeping over his missing arm. The first shrieks of horror and surprise came from the Hufflepuff table then Ravenclaw with Gryffindor and Slytherin noticing at about the same time.

Severus glanced up from the remains of his meal in surprise and realized what everyone was panicking over. He had wondered what the old fool had done about his arm but hadn't been able to focus on it because of the spell. If he'd cared enough about it, felt somehow threatened by it, his Occlumency skills would have let him break the notice-me-not. The only drawback from the attempt would be that the very nature of the spell would have fought him all the way and given him a massive migraine. A mischievous giggle in the back of his mind suddenly had him wondering if the castle wasn't responsible for the failing of the spell and the wave of magic that had washed it away.

With a deep sigh of resignation he stood and silently cast a Sonorus before giving an increasingly loud growl that drew everyone's attention before speaking. He easily allowed the spell to amplify his near whisper into a virtual shout. "IF YOU DON'T BE QUIET THEN I WILL HAVE EVERY LAST ONE OF YOU FOR DETENTION HELPING WITH MY POTIONS INGREDIENTS, PROVIDED I DON'T USE _YOU_ AS AN INGREDIENT!" An equally silent finite ended the amplification spell and allowed him to sit back down, finishing his meal with a silent glare at the whole of the great hall.

"Yes, thank you Severus," Dumbledore said easily, his words belied by the uneasy glances he was occasionally throwing at the dour potions master. Harry and Draco were the only ones to successfully recognize the hidden amusement of the onyx-eyed man behind his glower. A glance across the table had them silently agreeing to ambush him and try to find out how he had done that or at least get him to help them with the pranks they planned for the old goat.

"As most of the older students know the upcoming ball is mandatory for fifth years and up. A fourth year may attend only if their parent or guardian is present or they are the date of an older year. Third years and younger are to remain in the dorms all night starting an hour before the ball at seven. To compensate for your earlier curfew snacks and such will be served in the common room until two in the morning. 50 points will be awarded to the house that has used the time most wisely. Another 50 points may be earned if you can prove to your head of house by the end of the first week of term that every last member of your house has their homework done. An additional 25 points is possible if at least half the house has also worked ahead and completed an additional weeks worth of assignments. Again, this must be complete by the end of the first week of the new term. All told you may earn an extra 125 points for your house. As to dress robes and the like for the ball the proprietors of Madam Malkin's, Twilfitt and Tatting's, as well as Gladrags have all agreed to come to the castle. Please speak to your head of house if any problems arise in regards to your dress robes or to have your already purchased robes checked for suitability. That will be all for the moment," Dumbledore told them all with a grandfatherly smile.

The other staff members exchanged a look, having not been consulted about this matter at all. Severus was wondering if the old man was trying to get into the school's good graces so that the wards would transfer back to him. The derisive snot in the back of his mind said it was never going to happen no matter what ploy he tried. Severus had gotten used to the odd form of communication with the school over the period of the fall term. He had happily used it to keep Harry or any of the rest of his Slytherins from getting ambushed. The ability also netted some of his snakes a weeks worth of detention for trying to ambush other students in revenge. He wasn't pleased and made sure they knew it.

After the breakfast announcement and the end of breakfast things went in some very strange directions for the staff. The arrival of the three named tailors accompanied by their entire staff had everyone either scrambling for their wardrobes or needing help from a teacher. Knowing that both Harry and Draco along with most of Draco's friends already had proper dress robes Severus sent them off to hide from the chaos and get some homework done. One look at how Pansy was eyeing them and the various fabrics had them scrambling out of the great hall to snag their school work and hide in the library.

The chaos was just starting to wind down around supper time when Hogwarts sent a mental cackle through the minds of the staff. She gleefully allowed the special portkey transporting her dinosaur guests, complete with special translation amulets through the wards to land just outside the castle. The school sent another magic pulse out just as they landed, this time aimed at her guests. Hogwarts sent the rules of the visit into their very bones hard enough to ache. She did _not_ want the students hurt. She had only invited them because she knew perfectly well that her carnivorous guests were capable of controlling themselves.

Reminding them about the rules in such a fashion had the added bonus of several indignant roars shaking the stones of the castle and spooking the owls into flight. The sound echoed over Hogsmeade and spooked Alan into running for the castle. A castle he had never admitted to being able to see after being told not to worry if all he could see was a bunch of ruins. Alan had easily recognized the sound and the direction it had come from. He was terrified of what might happen to his small family. Remus and his wolf recognized the danger from the sound alone and followed on Alan's heels as they headed for the gates.

They nearly slammed into the gates of the school head on, panting hard with the fear for their family the only thing keeping them moving. The school opened the main gates as they approached. Remus fleetingly thought that the school felt smug over something but dismissed it in favor of scrambling over the grounds towards the castle. They had been at the train station for something neither of them now remembered about and had simply bolted up the road towards the school when the sound of Rexy's indignant roar had echoed across the area. As they got closer the charm that the goblins had provided started to work, allowing them to understand the reptiles despite the speech being an obvious form of Parseltongue.

"~What do you take me for?! We know the rules. The hatchlings will be safe while we are here,~" Rexy roared indignantly.

"~You house one of our pack hatchlings! Of course we'll help protect them you stubborn stone nest!~" the alpha female raptor snarled at the building, equally indignant over the insinuation.

When the two men caught sight of the group they stopped dead. Not only was the sight of dinosaurs on the grounds awe inspiring but there were many large _lethal_ teeth present for them to be wary of. That's when the group of carnivores noticed them.

"~Good! The old prey that has taken care of the young speaker is here! He can bring our hatchling speaker to us,~" one of the lesser female raptors chittered excitedly. Alan wondered if he was going insane since he could actually understand the dinosaurs standing peacefully in front of the school. Absently he noticed the many faces peering out of the windows that had any sort of ground floor view of the area just in front of the castle's main entry.

"Remus, do you see what I see? For that matter did you just hear what I heard?" Alan asked calmly, trying to process what was going on.

"If you see a bunch of raptors and a T-Rex while listening to them protest they weren't going to hurt the students then I would have to say yes," Remus said equally calmly, less shocked due to some of the pranks James and Sirius used to pull but still having trouble keeping his cool.

"That's what I thought," Alan said in resignation as he once more quickly reorganized his mind around the new, potentially deadly, facts.

"~What is wrong with the creature? Wait, this is the prey that was fun to play with and protected the pink, squishy hatchlings when the storm stopped giving power to the strange silver vines that had trapped me. You entrusted a speaker to him?~" Rexy rumbled in obvious interest.

"~We did! We did!~" a young hyper male raptor told her excitedly, darting back and forth in front of the much larger dinosaur.

"~I will snack on you if you don't cease annoying me midget,~" Rexy warned in obvious irritation. The adolescent raptor simply snapped his jaw back in obvious laughter.

"You swear you won't hurt anyone?" Alan called out cautiously, deciding to figure out how he could understand them later.

"~The stone nest invited us to visit the young speaker,~" the beta female informed him smugly. "~We agreed not to harm the hatchlings. The adults are fair game if they irritate us. The stone nest agreed to provide us food and a hunting ground while we visit the speaker's territory.~"

"What hunting ground?" Remus asked, dread curling in his belly.

"~Among the trees. We are not to try eating the pure ones or their caretakers the ones like you on top but with a pure one's lower body. The properly sized eight legged things are going to be interesting to snack on,~" Rexy told them smugly.

"Pure Ones? Caretakers? Properly sized eight legged things?" Remus asked in obvious confusion just as Severus and Harry arrived via broom, having gone out an upper window to talk to their visitors. Harry had been adamant and Severus had only agreed because it was the same raptor pack that his son had already dealt with and they would be on brooms. With Harry's skill at flying he should be able to get away even if they killed Severus when he got between the raptors and his son.

"You guys are loud," Harry complained to the dinosaurs.

"Harry!" Severus scolded sharply, his tone sharpened even further by worry.

"What? You heard what they said. They're here to visit and the castle invited them," Harry pointed out. Raja poked his head from under the messy mop of hair and chittered at everyone before hiding again.

"~Was that...? Speaker you have found a Fireflyer!~" one of the raptors from the original encounter on the island chittered excitedly. The entire pack immediately focused on Harry where he was hovering and his little familiar.

"Fireflyer? Everyone's been calling him a Proto-dragon," Harry said with a wrinkled nose and a cute look of confusion. "I named him Raja and he's my familiar. See you can even tell since his eyes have turned green like mine and he stays with me all the time."

"~Come down here! You're making my head hurt flitting about back and forth without going any where,~" the alpha female ordered with an irritated grumble.

"Harry," Severus said in warning.

"It's not like they can't talk to me without whatever is helping you understand them Dad and both Tad and Remus are right over there," Harry pointed out.

"That does not reassure me," Severus said with a glower. He eyed the dinosaurs warily for another moment before slowly giving a reluctant nod. Father and son returned to the ground to stand together not far from the group of saurians. Harry tried to dart forwards to properly great the raptor pack only for Severus to snag the back of his cloths and yank him up short.

"Try that again and you will be grounded until you graduate!" Severus hissed at his son before tucking him protectively under his arm, wand in his other hand.

The raptors found their antics amusing and had long since been able to detect the change in Harry's scent with the wind blowing towards them and past the two wizards. They had a similar if different adoption magic so were perfectly aware of what had happened between Harry, Severus, and Alan to change the younger man's scent. The werewolf was another matter entirely and was being watched carefully out of the corner of their vision. At any one time at least two of the pack were openly watching him and ready to move if he proved a threat.

"~I like this little speaker,~" Rexy declared out of the blue with an obvious coo over how cute Harry was.

"Touch my son and you'll find out why I'm considered to be so dangerous," Severus snarled at the full sized female T-Rex. She snorted in amusement and continued to coo over Harry as if he was _her_ hatchling.

"How do you get so many people and dangerous things to like you?" Alan asked in bewilderment as he jogged over to stand by his son and his partner. Before Remus could get within ten feet of Harry though he was knocked to the ground and pinned in place by a young Velociraptor.

"What are you doing?!" Harry cried out, held back by his parents when he tried to go to Remus.

"~He is not pack and smells of blood, teeth, and the hunt. You are a speaker and more fragile then the rest of the pack. He will not approach you or we will treat him as a threat,~" the female alpha said calmly as the rest of the pack protectively circled the three humans.

"He recognized Harry as his alpha," Severus pointed out reluctantly. He still didn't trust the man after the fiasco during Harry's third year and the nearly leathal prank pulled on him during school.

"~We can scent your mistrust of him no matter the hatchling speaker's obvious adoration for him. He will not approach close or we will kill him,~" the alpha shot back in a calm tone laced with amusement that was reinforced by an equally amused snap of her jaw.

"I.. I understand," Remus choked out before finally relaxing submissively and hoping that they wouldn't simply kill him.

"Remus, you've got enough control of your wolf that I think you should be fine. Maybe you could go check on that house that Sirius gave you? We'll look after Harry just fine," Alan assured the wolf. Remus nodded dejectedly as he was finally let up before turning and slinking off towards Hogsmeade, figurative tail between his legs.

"Poor Remus," Harry murmured sadly, watching the man go and knowing that this last blow to his confidence would keep the man from trying to see him. If a pack of dangerous vicious predators didn't want him near his cub then what right did he have to keep putting his cub in danger just by being there?

"~He also smelled of both death and the sickness of lost heart and body. You did well to heal him so much but he can not be allowed near the speaker hatchling. He might have tried to take Harry with him when he chooses to rejoin his lost pack. It is a sickness even we occasionally experience and one that must be watched for,~" the alpha explained sadly as they watched Remus leave. "We can protect him while we are here but when we return to our own hunting grounds that duty will fall to the two of you. He will never heal enough to become a hunter for your human pack. His scent tells us he spent to long separated from his pack without forming or joining another."

"He's dying of a broken heart," Alan agreed with a sad nod.

"~Enough about the fallen hunter. What has been happening since we last heard from you? Has the other speaker given his forfeit? Has anyone else tried attacking you?~" the female alpha asked in obvious interest as they went from combat status back down to simply visiting. One of the raptors knocked into another starting a playful tussle which evolved into a wrestling match between four of them. Everyone watched as they got caught up on news with the entire school watching from the windows.


	22. Dragons Of Fortune

Over the next two days Dumbledore was forced to deal with the headaches caused by visiting dinosaurs, arranging the minor details of the political ball, and the unexpected arrival of four fully grown dragon mothers with several offspring each. The food for Rexy and the raptors was easily taken care of since they liked hunting the Arcomantula in the forest. Somehow Dumbledore never actually saw their saurian guests bogged down as he was in paperwork and legalities until the Dragon Incident.

Of course people (including Alan) wondered why the dinosaurs could be perfectly comfortable out in the cold and the snow. The simple answer was that they were technically warmblooded and had a different heat exchange system than anyone realized. The even less complicated reason was that they were using their own form of magic to keep warm and not fall through snow drifts if they didn't feel like it. This led to at least one spectacular snowball fight in which the dinosaurs happily played target for the students as various snowballs and snow-boulders were aimed at them.

One snow-boulder made by a mischievous group made of Alan, Severus, and the visiting Weasley twins even knocked Rexy off her feet. The snow-boulder was immediately munched on by the irritated Rexy and everyone agreed to stop using her as a target for at least an hour. The Velociraptors just laughed and used her as a launching pad for aerial attacks to land near attacking students and knock them into the plentiful snow.

The dragons were a slightly different story when they arrived, with the 2-4 babies each(minus Norberta) that had to be taken care of. Even with the mothers willing to take turns watching them and Hagrid's enthusiastic assistance it became... interesting. Not to mention that no one was quite sure how they arrived without being seen. Then there was the incident when the dragons had found Harry and little Raja at almost the exact same time as the Dragon Keepers from the reserve found the dragons.

Harry had been visiting the Thestrals with Luna and was getting ready to head back into the castle out of the cold. He didn't mind being outside as much now that he had proper clothing compared to what the Dursleys had given him. Raja, on the other hand, wasn't yet as comfortable with the temperature difference and had been occasionally nipping his ear to try and get him to go back into the warmth.

Luna had wandered away from him but stayed in sight about ten minutes before the dragons arrived and decided to investigate the Thestral herd. They each landed with a thud on the outer edges of the herd's clearing, spooking the Thestrals into quickly crowding the other side and eyeing them warily. This movement of the heard revealed Harry standing there staring dumbfounded at their arrival and the fact that the Thestrals didn't simply bolt.

Norberta immediately recognized him and, moving fast, knocked into him enthusiastically in greeting. Harry and Raja went flying, hitting a tree hard with Raja catching himself mid-air using his wings. The screech of outrage was quickly followed by one of incandescent fury when Raja realized that Harry was hurt. The little dragon wasted no time in attempting to attack the creature that hurt his wizard.

Norberta was confused, quickly backing away under the scolding and physical onslaught from the tiny flyer. Raja wasted no time in spitting icicles and venom at the much larger juvenile Norwegian Ridgeback. It was the scolding from the four mother dragons that broke up the very confused fight. Norberta was scolded for not being careful enough around a human and Raja was scolded for not checking his human first. Thankfully, the Dragon Keepers had seen what had happened and were already tending to Harry who was having trouble breathing.

"~SorrySorrySorrySorry!~" Raja cried as he quickly flew back to Harry and landed on the ground near him. On of the tamers quickly got between them in an attempt to sheild Harry. Raja drooped, taking it as a rejection rather than a protective measure.

"It's alright Raja," Harry wheezed out. "Come here."

"Kid, we aren't letting anything near you," a gruff brunette told him before turning to his fellow Dragon Keepers. "I think he's delirious."

"Give me back my familiar!" Harry demanded, forcing himself carefully into a sitting position and completely ignoring his broken ribs. He knew the risk of puncturing a lung but at that moment getting Raja back was more important.

Raja took advantage of the brief distraction that Harry caused with his stubbornness to get to his side and try to cuddle up against him comfortingly. For the next half hour the Dragon Keepers tried to separate them but neither of them were willing to let go of each other. Finally, someone thought to call someone from the school to help. One look at the scene was all it took for Severus to realize what had likely happened. It was clear that the other dragons were still scolding Norberta and Harry wasn't going to let them take away Raja. He wasn't entirely sure why the Dragon Keepers hadn't simply stunned his son and carried him to the castle but figured it would be easier to sort out as it was.

"Move!" Severus' sharp command immediately opened up a path to his son. "Harry? Are you alright?"

"It wasn't on purpose dad," Harry wheezed, clutching Raja in a way that clearly told the potions master that he thought they would be separated.

"I'm not taking Raja away but I do need to check you over. Now, can you understand the dragons like you can with Raja and the raptors?" Severus said gently, drawing his wand to cast the medical diagnostic spells. He didn't want to try moving his son if there was a risk of hurting him without using one of the stabilization spells.

"Yeah, they're scolding the Ridgeback for not being careful enough with me. She was trying to say hi or something," Harry said wheezily.

"I don't like the sound of your chest," Severus muttered only paying half his attention to the words of his son.

That's when everyone discovered that the baby dragons had snuck away from their mothers to try and see Raja. The Dragon Keepers were all playfully knocked down and the small family was faced with 12 baby dragons. There were 2 Chinese Fireballs, 3 Swedish Short-Snouts, 3 Common Welsh Greens, and 4 Hungarian Horntails, all of which were conveniently sitting on the Dragon Keepers and keeping them pinned in place. From what Harry could guess with his experience with Norberta they had to be around a few months old.

"~Hi,~" Harry hissed as cheerfully as possible, wincing at the pain from his ribs.

"~Hullo!~" They chorused, occasionally whacking a Dragon Keeper that was wiggling too much for their liking with a tail.

"~This is my dad and I think you're sitting on top of the humans who are supposed to help take care of you,~" Harry hissed pointedly, completely ignoring the various spells his dad was casting on him.

"~They're fun!~" one of the Chinese Fireballs chirped happily as it settled more comfortably on top of its chosen perch.

"~Do you like it when your sibling sits on you? Humans are more squishy than dragons and I bet he feels really squished,~" Harry pointed out.

There were various noises of disappointment as each hatchling carefully moved off of the Dragon Keeper they were sitting on. Severus noticed with some amusement that they made sure to be on Harry's side of the Keepers rather than the side their mothers were on. It reminded him very much of students who wanted to stand closer to the Professor who _didn't_ know what mischief they'd just been up to versus the one who was about to hand them a detention.

"~Little ones? Little ones!~" the mother Hungarian Horntail was the first to notice them missing and shout for them in worry.

"~Over here!~" Harry did his best to shout but found himself struggling to breath. Severus immediately made him lay back against the tree and poured a painkiller down his throat. His breathing immediately eased with the reduction of pain. 

Hearing the shout the five older dragons quickly made their way over, gently nosing the Dragon Keepers out of the way. The baby dragons giggled a bit as they were each examined in turn by their mother. Norberta stood forlornly nearby looking like a seventh year that had completely botched their potion right in front of the potions master.

"~Mama! He has a little dragon!~" one of the Horntails said excitedly. "~He's even smaller than us! He's smaller than those pink squealy things that the nice humans give us!~

"~Oh? Was that who attacked when the young human was greeted to hard?~" the mother Fireball asked peering down at the injured wizard and a very disgruntled Raja.

"~Oh dear, an Ancient One and he's bonded to the young human,~" the mother Swedish Short-Snout murmured.

"~Children, do you remember the greeting to the elders? Not the silly one showing off your fire breath but the other one? The even more formal one that makes the elders strut? That is one you _always_ use with an Ancient One and never make fun of their size,~" The mother Common Welsh Green quickly instructed.

"~Does that mean we can't be friends?~" one of the baby Short-Snouts asked forlornly.

"~Not until you use the proper greeting. Its rude not to introduce yourself. At least you have been careful with the Ancient One's human. Hurting him would have been a deadly insult,~" the mother Fireball explained. "~We need to heal him because LostReturn hurt him.~" 

"~Why don't we just use the human name for her? Nor-bert-a?~" a baby Horntail asked making a face.

"~Names are important and none of you have yet to earn one of your own,~" the baby's mother answered gravely.

"~Yes Mama,~" the babies chorused in a resigned tone that had Harry fighting not to laugh. What happened next though had them all gaping in shock. Every single dragon present, except for Raja still sitting in Harry's hand, faced Harry and Raja bowing low and sweeping their tails in a very specific pattern behind them.

"~Greetings Ancient One and Bonded!~" the dragons rumbled as one. Norberta was kept to the back of the group, clearly still in trouble but still completed the greeting successfully with only a slight hesitation in the pattern.

"~Um, hi?~" Harry said in bewilderment. Raja wiggled free and scrambled up to sit on Harry's head, regarding the other dragons gravely. He very clearly inclined his head in acknowledgement before hissing his own simple greeting.

"~May we heal your bonded one?~" the mother Fireball asked respectfully. Raja stared at them thoughtfully for a moment before chirping happily and leaping carefully to land on the ground next to Harry.

"Dad, they said they're going to heal me. I think they need everyone to move back," Harry said with trepidation, eyeing the dragons warily.

"A speaker, that is interesting," rasped out the Horntail in barely understandable English.

"You can speak!" one of the Dragon Keepers squeaked.

"If you mean in your tongue, only in the presence of an Ancient One. We speak all the time you simply don't listen," the Horntail retorted.

"I'm not moving away from my injured son," Severus told them stubbornly.

"That is perfectly acceptable. ~Children, carefully move the squishy humans back but leave the Bonded and his sire where they are. We are going to heal the Bonded and don't want them interfering,~" the mother Horntail instructed.

The babies enthusiastically took to their task, quickly forcing the Dragon Keepers back about twenty feet, allowing their mothers to have better access to Harry and Severus.

"You will both drink what we give you. Do not fear, it will not harm you as it is freely given for this purpose," the mother Horntail informed them in her raspy English.

Norberta, realizing what was happening, quickly offered the curved arrowhead plate of her tail tip to each of the other dragons. She caught several drops of blood from each of her fellows that dripped from small self-inflicted cuts into the natural cup that her tail tip formed. Severus stared in shock when the natural cup was offered to them. Harry simply drank after glancing at both an encouraging Raja and an amused mother Horntail since his father was momentarily too out of it to say anything and he saw no fear in the older wizard's face. Severus dazedly finished off what was in the cup once Harry had forced down several mouthfuls.

The mixed blood burned down both their throats, searing through the flesh straight into their blood stream and sitting like a bonfire in their bellies. They both quickly grew warm until they were breathing little bursts of magical fire. Raja crooned at both of them, trying to sooth the discomfort yet proud that neither had made more than a few quiet sounds. Harry could feel his broken ribs snapping back into place and healing over as if they had never been broken. He could also feel the new protections settling into every cell of his body before the heat finally died away.

"You are less squishy now," the mother Horntail rumbled with a laugh.

The children took that as their cue to dash over and pounce on the two wizards, completely ignoring Raja's indignant sqwak. They didn't have time to do more than brace themselves as the little dragons barreled straight into them. This started a tumbling wrestling match that made the two forget that Harry had been injured and recently healed. The fun romp continued until both Harry and Severus lay flat on their backs, panting and refusing to move no matter how much the babies nudged them to play some more. The dragons all curled up around them and settled into a nap, trapping the two wizards via cuddling baby dragon. Which is exactly how Alan found them all when he came looking several hours later.


	23. Dumbledore Meets the Dragons

Dumbledore had been walking with Alan, trying to convince him that he should leave the school when they stumbled upon the dragon style puppy pile. That was when he decided that he had to get Harry away, to protect him and teach him how to kill Voldemort. There were obviously too many distractions here at the school and he'd put the rigorous training off for long enough. First they would retrieve the horcrux in the cave he'd discovered then the boy's training would begin in earnest. If the boy broke a little bit, well it was all for the greater good. His latest pet would have to be killed of course and that blasted owl but they could be used as object lessons about the vulnerabilities that attachments gave someone. The boy would, of course be signing over all properties and moneys along with his Wizengamot seats if he wanted his new parents left alone. It was just a pity that he hadn't been more obedient then he wouldn't need to resort to something so... messy. Not to mention that his warning to young Unspeakable Percy Weasley about Harry's dangerous affiliation with the house of serpents clearly hadn't been enough to bring the brat to heel.

Alan, properly dressed for the weather and completely unaware of Dumbledore's thoughts cautiously approached the puppy pile. That is he was cautious until he saw Severus and Harry pinned beneath the baby dragons between two of the mama dragons. He couldn't resist thinking how cute they both were in that moment but still didn't risk coming closer to those mountains of muscle and teeth. His laughter woke both his son and his surly partner enough for them to glare at him under the pile of still sleeping baby dragons.

Norberta chose that moment to look up and recognize Dumbledore. She lunged for the old man and got knocked flying by a negligent swish of the Short-Snout's tail, sending her tumbling. Her yelp of surprise woke everyone up. The mothers didn't move from their circle but did open their eyes to see what was going on. The baby dragons climbed up on top of the mother Fireball to see as well, freeing Harry, Raja, and Severus to join them at their scaly observation post.

"~Youngling, we do not attack humans without cause,~" the Horntail rumbled in obvious amusement.

"~He's why the big man and the speaker sent me away,~" Norberta said petulantly, quickly and easily righting herself to grumpily return to where she had been napping.

"Norberta?! She imprinted on Hagrid but it was too dangerous for her to stay," Harry said in surprise.

"And you are the one who flew well against me to gain the false golden egg. I apologize for being so rough with you. We were given no explanation and all of us were fully focused on protecting our clutch," the Horntail rasped, reaching her neck over to nudge at him and each of her hatchlings affectionately.

"Speak for yourself! I lost half my clutch in that fiasco!" the Fireball snarled. The hatchlings all started at her vehemence but quickly calmed under the cooing from all of the older dragons. Even Raja tried joining in and his voice seemed to make the sounds even more effective.

"I am terribly sorry about that," Dumbledore said in as contrite a fashion as he could manage. It immediately gained him the angry undivided attention of the mother dragons.

" _You_ are responsible for that incident?!" the Horntail hissed dangerously.

"Not entirely but the man who was primarily in charge of that is currently dead," Severus pointed out quietly. "He could have stopped it but I caught him encouraging the entire mess more than once instead. At least it wasn't worse."

"LostReturn, I apologize for stopping you. If you wish to try again you have permission to do so," the Horntail declared with flat finality. Dumbledore took one look at how serious and angry they were before bolting from the clearing, robes flapping, his single arm trailing behind him in the wind of his passage.

"Maybe I shouldn't have made the pack promise not to eat him," Harry said thoughtfully, wincing as he accidentally got an eyeful of the old man's brightly colored underwear.

"And exactly how badly do you think the rest of the school would have been traumatized if you hadn't? They aren't exactly gentle with their prey nor would they have worried over the audience in any fashion. I have no wish to be comforting the entire first five years and more of the school simply because they decided to play with him before killing him," Severus said flatly.

"Sorry dad, didn't think of that," Harry said sheepishly.

"I'm really starting to dislike that man. He was trying pretty hard to get me to leave," Alan commented mildly, more than a little amused at Dumbledore's abrupt exit.

"I wonder where Luna went?" Harry mused, finally realizing how long he'd been away from the castle.

"Blond girl with homemade jewelry? She said for me to tell you that she had fun but had to go finish an article on Wrackspurts or something," Alan informed his son, still staying well back from the magical predators.

"Lovegood is always babbling about some inane creature or other. I have no idea where she gets the ideas for them but they are very real to her," Severus said with a snort of amusement.

"So possibly something that she can see but the rest of us can't or something she sees but was never taught the common name for," Alan mused aloud.

"Yup," Harry said cheerfully before being knocked down by one of the baby Fireballs starting another round of dragon wrangling.

"The young Ancient One has chosen his bonded well," the mother Horntail chuckled with a rasp.

"Raja saved my son's life. His godfather had died a few days before a... friend presented Harry with his egg. The magical bond backlashed and the accelerated emotional healing took on a dangerous aspect. Raja bonded with Harry while still inside his egg and broke him from the downward spiral that was killing him," Severus explained quietly as they watched Harry and the babies tussle inside the circle of dragons.

"His kind are our forefathers as are the dinosaurs we can sense within a five minute's flight from here. None know why we are able to speak other tongues in the presence of an Ancient One. We had thought them all lost to time," the Fireball rumbled. She stared fondly at the playing children as Raja gave an indignant yelp before diving in for playful vengeance after he was knocked out of the wrestling pile.

"Why did you chase off the Dragonologists? They spend their lives dedicated to studying your people," Severus asked in obvious amusement, having decided to change the subject for the moment.

"We can take care of our hatchlings just fine without them hovering and they were irritating with their many questions," the Short-Snout admitted, irritation at the memory leaking into her smoky voice.

"It isn't exactly common, being able to speak with dragonkind in an understandable manner," Severus pointed out. Though the way they'd chased the Dragon Keepers off had been highly amusing.

"That doesn't change the irritation level, nor the disrespect they showed for our hatchlings," the Welsh Green pointed out.

Severus wisely said nothing about that. He'd been awake for the confrontation, if more than slightly trapped. He was still wondering why the particularly stuck up Dragonologist aka Dragon Keeper was alive and completely unharmed. They spent another hour with the dragons before Harry successfully extracted them so they could return to the castle for supper.


	24. The Ignominious Death of Lord Dumbledore

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The death you have all been waiting for!  
> Depending on encouragement I may either end it here or add more.  
> ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The night of the mandatory ball was... intense. The staff had quickly realized they wouldn't be able to decorate the school properly and failed to argue Dumbledore into calling in professionals. As a result they spent a couple of hours teaching the sixth and seventh years the charms and other spells used in decorating while offering bribes to get help decorating. There was a choice between sweets, points, or the freedom from a single assignment from one class. The other teachers had managed to talk Severus into agreeing to the terms and many students picked the automatic pass on one assignment.

Thankfully, Severus, Harry, and Alan were asked to deal with their saurian and draconic visitors rather than help decorate. This task was simplified by the fact that Harry could talk with everyone even if the translation spells some how failed. Harry's status as walking translator made more than a few students jealous since he was getting out of the chaos of decorating and preparing for the ball on top of being able to speak naturally to the special visitors.

Dumbledore kept lurking around the small family, making them all very uncomfortable. The only peace they got was when they spent time with the dragons, raptors, or Rexy. This irritated them to no end and the baby dragons took to trying to bite his leg off while a few of the more excitable raptors opted to play _tag_ with him when he got to close. The attempts got so bad that he made both Minerva and Poppy ask Harry to get their visitors to stop. Harry just sweetly asked if they wanted to let them play in the castle instead. After that Dumbledore tried to stay out of their range. No one bothered to correct him about their actual range or attack speed as long as he stayed 30 feet out.

By the time the ball started Dumbledore was practically black and blue. The school had very carefully magically expanded both the entrance and the great hall to allow a proper mingling of all guests. All of the special visitors had agreed to leave Dumbledore alone for the night unless he did something terminally stupid. Each of the more human guests were specifically informed of the known special circumstances surrounding their attendance. As such more than one decided to blame Dumbledore for their presence.

Dumbledore didn't care about being blamed for the dinosaurs and the dragons, he only had eyes for Harry. He was more than ready to snatch up the younger wizard and simply run, returning only when he had the young man firmly back under his thumb. Luna, in her own way, arranged to keep as many people as possible between the Headmaster and Harry. Unfortunately, that plan only worked for about an hour. It would have worked longer had the Malfoys not been delayed in arriving.

"Harry my boy! How nice it is to see you," Dumbledore said congenially as he strode up to the momentarily alone young man. Raja peeked out from under Harry's sable locks to hiss at the man in obvious warning mixed with anger.

"You see me all the time Headmaster," Harry pointed out warily. He knew he wasn't supposed to be alone with the man but couldn't think of a way around it at the moment.

"I'm afraid there must have been some sort of misunderstanding, my boy. I mean you no harm and I really can't fathom why Professor Snape and his... friend insist that the two of us not even share a spot of tea. Perhaps you could convince them that they are being just a touch silly?" Dumbledore suggested gently.

Harry's mental response was 'Not likely.' While his verbal response was a wary "I'll try, sir."

Raja was no where near so cordial. The small Proto Dragon instead chose to take a deep breath and spit a mixture of venom and ice splinters into the man's face. As soon as Harry saw the raw fury on the man's face he realized that Raja had made a mistake and tried to bolt. Dumbledore had his wand out in a split second and accioed Harry into his arms before spitting a word to trigger a portkey. Raja had tumbled from Harry's shoulder as he was dragged backwards and let out a shriek of mixed rage, pain, and sorrow when Harry disappeared that quickly brought Dragons, Dinosaurs, and Harry's family to his side.

"Raja? What's wrong? Where's Harry?" Alan asked, quickly picking up the puppy sized lizard. Raja just slid into a long mix of chattering and hisses that clearly indicated his pain and distress but not much else to the slowly changing human.

"~He said the mean old one that scared you took his wizard and disappeared into nothingness. He hurts with how far apart they are,~ a young Velociraptor translated for Alan. The thunderous look that appeared on Severus' face when he heard this had many students, current and former, scrambling away from him.

"What else?" Severus demanded in a quiet hiss of absolute fury.

"~He says we need the other speaker. That they can find him together but the one armed one is going to hurt his wizard if we do not hurry,~" the same raptor translated after listening to the furious hissing of the young familiar.

Severus didn't waste any time once he heard this. He ripped open his left sleeve, exposing the dark mark and pressed his wand to it before adding a shot of magic. Simultaneously, he mentally asked the castle to let Voldemort into the school to help retrieve his son. Hogwarts laughed in delight, the magic making it heard by all as she finally prepared to open fully to one of her heirs. A responding flare of heat in the tattoo told Severus that his emergency call had been heard and that his former master was coming.

Voldemort had apparated straight to Hogsmeade, Lucius on his heels. Narcissa had stayed behind and was doing her best to contact as many trustworthy people as possible to help. The Dark Lord had felt Harry's mix of shock, confusion, and distress along the Horcrux bond shortly before Severus' call for help. After receiving both he would be damned if he didn't respond. If they were still in the castle then he was perfectly willing to rip apart the wards to come to their aid. As a result what happened was a complete shock to both him and Lucius when they did touch the wards. The wards of the ancient school felt for their signatures, recognizing both of them in different ways they reacted. Lucius was allowed through without a problem as a Governor. Voldemort, on the other hand, felt a bond snap into place a split second before knowledge and power flooded into him in a warm welcome.

They paused for a moment in shock before the castle's magic snapped them up and gently placed them exactly where they wanted to go. They landed next to the worried group and spooked Alan into falling backwards away from them into the side of the Chinese Fireball. Severus just stared in absolute shock, ripped sleeve hanging free as he slowly removed his wand from the mark.

"That... was unexpected," Lucius said carefully.

"We'll figure it out later," Voldemort snapped at the blond before turning on Harry's parents and demanding. "Where is Harry?" The question snapped them out of their stupor and reminded them of the situation.

"Dumbledore kidnapped him. Through the wards I felt a portkey go off but there isn't a ward to prevent Portkey travel, only apparation, which is routinely lowered to allow for the apparation course," Severus reported quickly. "Raja saw them go and said that the two of you together can track him. One of the raptors was kind enough to translate."

"~The young speaker is the only reason we did not kill him as a threat to the pack,~" the alpha female raptor hissed in obvious irritation and fury. Raja mewled pitifully, the pain getting worse the longer he was away from Harry.

"Give me Raja, between my link and his we might be able to apparate straight to him. As I am now connected to the school's wards we don't need to lower them," Voldemort said in a commanding tone. Alan quickly handed over the Proto Dragon and watched anxiously as Voldemort held his wand over the now shivering familiar. A moment later he apparated, following the joined connection and leaving everyone behind.

"He didn't," Lucius said in dismay.

"He did," Severus countered. "Everyone who's coming needs to grab onto either I or Lucius. Lucius, I'm dropping the apparation wards so that we can follow. No oversized passengers such as dragons or Rexy. We don't know how much space we will have upon arrival or what traps, if any, we will have to contend with."

"On three," Lucius said, quickly returning to himself and exposing his own dark mark. "One, two, THREE!"

On the word three Severus dropped the apparation wards and they pressed their wands to their marks, taking the entire Raptor pack with them. Alan wisely stayed behind to try and keep everyone from panicking or Rexy and the dragons from snacking on anyone. They arrived in a clearing deep in the forbidden forest to find Harry being held at wand point by Dumbledore. He was visibly facing down a very angry Voldemort with an equally furious Raja sitting on his shoulder. The raptors immediately darted off into the foliage, giving away the presence of both Severus and Lucius but hiding themselves so well that they couldn't be seen.

"You really should have stayed at the party gentlemen. Harry just has some training to complete," Dumbledore said congenially, as if he wasn't threatening said younger wizard.

"You will return my son, unharmed, or I swear on my magic that you will find out exactly how I became an inner circle member while the Dark Lord was still _insane_!" Severus hissed in fury, wand aimed at the old man who had once protected him and treated him like a son.

"Now, now, Severus, lets not be hasty," Dumbledore admonished almost gently. "It's all for the greater good after all and sacrifices must be made."

"Whose greater good?!" Voldemort barked out with a bitter laugh.

It was at that point that Harry decided he'd had enough and viciously elbowed Dumbledore in the gut, bolting away from him and towards Voldemort. Seeing the opening the raptors struck, tearing the man apart as Voldemort protectively gathered Harry up. Lucius and Severus quickly moved in front of the duo, all of them shielding Harry in case Dumbledore got a spell off. He never had the chance to do more than briefly scream as the raptors struck. They struck in complete concert using both teeth and claws to literally shred the man in a pile of bone and gore.

"~Stupid one. Speakers are precious,~" the alpha female hissed at the pile of very dead meat. Not a single scrap was eaten as a sign of complete contempt for the man. Wordlessly Severus politely rinsed off the blood and gore from the raptors. Raja returned to Harry's shoulder and they all returned to Hogwarts, spending the remainder of the ball outside with Rexy, Alan, and the dragons. They used magic to stay warm and comfortable. The discovery and identification of Dumbledore's remains made it into the paper a week later as reported by a Hogsmeade resident looking for potion ingredients.


	25. The End???

Voldemort visited Harry at the school regularly after Dumbledore's kidnapping incident. Minerva, who recognized him from her own time in Gryffindor, wasn't exactly happy when she found out. She promptly dragged a promise of no harm out of him unless attacked first if he was withing 10 miles of Hogwarts. Voldemort graciously agreed. He even willingly agreed to no active recruiting attempts. The ministry fell to his people within six months. Lucius was made Minister since Voldemort didn't want to deal with the politicking or the _paperwork_ , just oust the idiots trying to get everyone killed.

Umbridge, in an attempt to ride the coat tails of Lucius and the Dark Lord, advocated that muggleborns were actually muggles that had stolen the magic of true witches and wizards. Her campaign lasted for a few days before Voldemort insisted on seeing her. She was up before the Wizengamot within twenty minutes of their meeting on charges of treason, child abuse, torture of a minor, and attempted violation of the Statute of Secrecy.

Severus, on the other hand, was immediately declared Headmaster upon return to the school by the school herself. The dour man wasn't exactly pleased to find himself forcefully transported into the Headmaster's seat. The plans for ruling the Wizarding World as an undying immortal later found in Dumbledore's quarters and specifically revealed by the castle itself were even less pleasant. They were all particularly disgusted to discover that the old man had planned to force Harry to walk to his own death and use said death in an ancient forbidden ritual to add Harry's life and magic to his own. Many of the plans were incomplete, insane, or partially destroyed so they couldn't be certain that the old man was truly gone for good. Severus' overhaul of the school and the curriculum were taken in stride with more than a little delight by the staff and students. All attending students were granted the right to remain an extra year to help correct any deficiencies in their education.

Harry and Hermione graduated as eighth years alongside Ginny and Luna. Neville was still serving his Herbology apprenticeship with Professor Sprout. Harry had discussed his own apprenticeship with his parents and both had asked him not to go for Auror or Hit Wizard. Severus pointed out that he could go into Dueling and offered an apprenticeship under himself for a Defense Mastery since he had a dual mastery. Harry happily agreed, not wanting to leave either his parents or Hogwarts but asked about a Magical Creature apprenticeship as well.

The day after he had graduated Harry was officially studying under Severus and Voldemort for his Defense mastery. He was also working part time at just opened Jurassic World studying the Dinosaurs for his informal Magical Creature apprenticeship. Alan wasn't happy about the potential disaster that park was nor that his son was working there but agreed on the condition that Harry take a magical bodyguard with him.

Harry's bodyguard eventually turned out to be a mix of Voldemort and Severus taking turns and bringing either paperwork or books with them for when they got bored. An accident at the theme park somehow got Harry classified as both a scientist studying the dinosaurs and as part of the security force on the island. Neither of them had been available to go with him that day and he'd been judged to be able to handle himself, especially since Rexy was on the island and had promised to watch him. As the only person that Rexy would listen to without fail in an emergency, as proven by the accident, Harry was immediately adopted by the staff of the island theme park. Things went swimmingly until Wu made the Indominous Rex...

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do I mark this as complete and start on a second separate story or keep going?
> 
> Edit: Sequel is up! Follow the series link to read chapter 1!


End file.
